The “Big Red One” officially welcomed three new leaders to the 1st Infantry
Division with a Victory with Honors ceremony July 21 at the division’s
headquarters on Fort Riley. The ceremony also allowed Soldiers and civilians
to say goodbye to two men who have had a great impact both within the
division and in the state of Kansas.
Brig. Gen. William A. Turner, Col. Scott Efflandt and Col. Charles
Masaracchia were welcomed as the division’s new deputy commanding general,
deputy commanding officer and chief of staff, respectively. Also honored
were Col. Peter G. Minalga, the outgoing 1st Inf. Div. chief of staff, and
John Armbrust, the departing executive director of the Governor’s Military
Council.
“John and Karen Armburst are examples of lifetime servants,” Grigsby said of
the exiting director and his wife. “We at Fort Riley have a saying: Fort
Riley is the best place to live, train, deploy from, come home to and retire
at. We believe all this, and you should to. It was through the efforts of
people like John Armburst who worked tirelessly and partnered with us over
the many years to ensure that we had the very best facilities and support
from our civil elected leaders.”
The Governor’s Military Council seeks to grow and protect major military
activities located in Kansas while creating defense-related jobs and helping
local governments improve conditions for service members and their families,
according to information from the governor’s office.
“Pete’s time in the division was exemplary,” Grigsby said of Minalga, who
commanded the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Inf. Div., during its
regionally aligned forces mission in Africa before serving as the chief of
staff. “Pete had small teams – sometimes as little as one to two Soldiers –
and upwards to the BCT headquarters deployed all over the continent of
Africa to build relations with and improve our African partners’ capacity
and capability to close with and destroy our enemies.”
Minalga is set to retire soon from the Army after a 26-year career.
“The Army will always be in my heart,” Minalga said. “The men and women I
have led throughout my career will always be in my heart. The men and women
of the 1st Infantry Division headquarters will always be in my heart.”
Turner most recently served as commandant of the United States Army Field
Artillery School, United States Army Fires Center of Excellence, at Fort
Sill, Oklahoma, beginning in June 2014. He previously served with the Big
Red One as commander of Battery B, 6th Field Artillery Regiment, 1st
Infantry Division (Mechanized) Artillery, from December 1991 to August 1993
and as current operations officer for the DIVARTY from January to December
1991.
“This is indeed the best place in the Army to live, train, deploy from and
come home to,” Turner said. “We’re very excited about this opportunity.”
Efflandt most recently served as executive officer to the commander of the
U.S. Army Forces Command from July 2015 to July 2016. He also served as
chief of the programs division in the Office of the Chief Legislative
Liaison at the Pentagon.
“I’m the newest Big Red One Soldier, and I couldn’t be happier to be
standing here today,” Efflandt said. “I was first assigned to Fort Riley,
Kansas, in 1984, and I’ve been trying ever since to be back.”
The deputy commanding officer joked there was a moral to that story: “I’m
not very fast, but I am persistent.”