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General David M. Rodriguez
General David M. Rodriguez
STUTTGART, Germany – On Monday, July 18, General David M. Rodriguez, Commander, U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), will pass the flag to U.S. Marine Corps General Thomas D. Waldhauser in a change of command ceremony here, capping a 40-year military career for Rodriguez.
Born in Overbrook, Pennsylvania in 1954 and raised in West Chester, Pennsylvania, Rodriguez earned his commission from the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York in 1976.
Rodriguez has commanded at every level across the United States Army. His previous assignment was as the Commanding General of the United States Army Forces Command. Additionally, Rodriguez commanded the International Security Assistance Force – Joint Command in Afghanistan; the 82nd Airborne Division; 2nd Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division; and 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault). He also commanded companies of the 75th Ranger Regiment, and 1st Armored Division.
As the third commander of AFRICOM, Rodriguez was responsible for working closely with the Department of State and embassies across the African continent in implementing the military and defense related elements of the U.S. Security Strategy, and executing the command’s mission.
“A stable Africa matters to the United States because it is a big continent and has tremendous potential in many different ways,” Rodriguez said. “If it’s not stable then challenges such as criminality, violent extremism, and humanitarian challenges can all create instability in this region which then extends to other locations throughout the world.”
Though challenging, Rodriguez says rewarding is one word he’d use to describe his command at AFRICOM.
“I learned a tremendous amount, not only about Africa and the African people, but about the organization and how it can help our African partners to become more self-dependent,” he said. “The relationships that have been developed not only in the headquarters, but throughout the African continent and with our partners in the interagency has been a huge part of why I say rewarding.”
As the 19th commander of the U.S. Army Forces Command, the Army's largest organization, he was responsible for training, readying and equipping 265,000 active component soldiers and 560,000 soldiers in the Army National Guard and United States Army Reserve.
From his early years in West Chester, a tight-knit, working-class community, he had an appreciation for the military. Like many of his friends and neighbors, Rodriguez knew relatives who had served during World War II, Korea and Vietnam.
"We all knew someone who served in the armed forces," Rodriguez recalls. "Schools like nearby West Chester University offer Army ROTC. The Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 106 has been operating there since 1899 and hosts a picnic on Memorial Day to honor the fallen. My father was in the Army and part of the occupation army of Japan."
After earning two varsity letters in football and receiving all-conference honors in baseball at Henderson High School, Rodriguez was recruited to play football for head coach Tom Cahill at West Point.
Rodriguez was a four-year member of the Army football team, earning his first varsity letter as a senior in 1975. He embarked on his military career after graduating in the spring of 1976 and was commissioned in the Infantry branch of the U.S. Army.
Rodriguez continued his education, earning a Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies from the United States Naval War College and a Master of Military Art and Science from the United States Army Command and General Staff College.
During his highly-decorated career, Rodriguez has earned the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, numerous foreign awards, Combat Infantryman Badge, Expert Infantryman Badge, Master Parachutist Badge, Air Assault Badge, and Ranger Tab.
In his more than 40 years of military service, Rodriguez has experienced nearly every aspect of being an Infantry leader and commander. His combat experience began during the Operation Just Cause as a planner for the XVIII Airborne Corps (1989-90). He also served as an operations officer for the 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 82nd Airborne during operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm (1990-91). Rodriguez returned to the Middle East as an Assistant Division Commander of the 4th Infantry Division (Mechanized) in 2002.
“After I was a company commander, I thought I might do this a little bit longer,” he said. “The military kept giving me opportunities and I just kept going.”
After several other high-ranking leadership positions, Gen. David Petraeus appointed Rodriguez as Deputy Commander, United States Forces Afghanistan. In that role, the then Lieutenant General was responsible for developing the operational plan for what has become known as the "Afghan Surge," the deployment of 30,000 additional troops in 2009.
Rodriguez was recently honored back home in Philadelphia when he accepted an award befitting his august, 40-year career: He was this year's recipient of the Alexander Haig Guardian of Liberty Award, bestowed by the West Point Society of Philadelphia.
Past honorees include retired Gen. Eric Shinseki, the former Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army; former Secretary of the Army Thomas E. White; and Tom Ridge, former Pennsylvania governor and first secretary of Homeland Security.
Rodriguez has nothing but gratitude for his years of military service. The military, he said, "has been an incredible opportunity for both me and my family. It has been a remarkable experience and I am thankful to my wife Ginny and my four children for supporting me through it all, and making all things possible."
Even in the most serious of times and under the most trying circumstances, members of Rodriguez’s staff know that the general tries to keep things light and see the humor in what life throws your way.
"I'm a practical joker because you have to be able to laugh at yourself and have fun no matter what you are facing," Rodriguez said. "Just enjoy life."
And with this closing comment, we honor Rodriguez’s 40 years of distinguished service to the United States and wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors… and we know, true to his motto, he will “just enjoy life!”
