Saturday night I was honored to be invited to the Westin Hotel in Kansas City for the Heart of America Army 236th Birthday Celebration.
After the introduction of the Fallen and Missing Soldier Table, Presentation of Colors, the National Anthem (performed by baritone Richard B. Gibson), Invocation and Toasts, and a dinner of sirloin steak and panko crusted salmon, the honored guest Lt. Gen. Robert L. Van Antwerp spoke.
Lt. Gen. Antwerp is the Chief of Engineers and Commanding General U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, a post he accepted on May 18, 2007. He oversees most of the Nation's civil works infrastructure and military construction. He is responsible for approximately 36,000 Civilian and 600 military employees, who provide project management and construction support to 250 Army and Air Force installations in nearly 100 countries around the world. Lt. Gen. Antwerp is a 1972 graduate of West Point and holds a Master of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan.
