Guard's 142nd gets new leader

Teegardin takes Fort Chaffee job

Lt. Col. Johnny Teegardin  is shown in this photo.
Lt. Col. Johnny Teegardin is shown in this photo.

FORT CHAFFEE -- The Arkansas National Guard's 142nd Field Artillery Brigade got a new commander Sunday in a ceremony at the Joint Maneuver Training Center.

In a ceremony symbolic of the change, incoming commander Lt. Col. Johnny Teegardin received the brigade flag from outgoing commander Col. Gregrey Bacon, who commanded the brigade for one year.

"When I say I'm coming home, it means a lot," Teegardin said in remarks to the 600 members of the 142nd and other state guard officials following the ceremony.

Teegardin was a member of the 142nd from 1990 until October 2012 when he was assigned as operations branch chief at the Joint Force Headquarters at Camp Robinson in North Little Rock.

On hand for Sunday's ceremony were Maj. Gen. Mark Berry, Arkansas adjutant general, Brig. Gen. Patricia Anslow, assistant adjutant general for operations, and commanders of other Arkansas National Guard brigades from around the state.

Teegardin will lead the more than 1,300-member brigade headquartered in Fayetteville with nine units stationed throughout Northwest and western Arkansas.

He said that except for Vietnam, the 142nd has been involved in every major war since World War I, and its participation continues today. Since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, guard members have continued to be deployed to foreign lands, have said goodbye to their families and have lost fellow soldiers.

In her remarks during the ceremony, Anslow said the world remains a dangerous place, and she was confident the level of focus of the 142nd will continue to make it ready to respond when the call comes for its service.

Teegardin, of Battlefield, Mo., joined the 1st Battalion of the 142nd in 1990 as a cadet in the University of Arkansas Reserve Officer Training Corps program. He received his commission as second lieutenant in 1993 and was appointed to the brigade.

Over the years, he served as battery commander, battalion commander and as deputy commander in October 2011 until his assignment to the Joint Forces Headquarters.

Teegardin served overseas in Kosovo, Iraq and Kuwait.

In civilian life, Teegardin is a resident engineer over roadway construction in the Branson area for the Missouri Department of Transportation.

Metro on 10/05/2015

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