(Story and photos by Laura Levering, editor of “The Communicator.” Reprinted with permission. Featured photo Brig. Gen. Paul D. Howard’s wife, Lisa, and daughter, Madeline, pin the one-star rank on Howard’s uniform during his promotion ceremony Jan. 5.)
The 42nd Chief of Signal and U.S. Army Signal School Commandant, Brig. Gen. Paul D. Howard, pinned on the one-star rank during a promotion ceremony held in his honor Jan. 5.
Family, friends and colleagues of Howard packed Eisenhower Conference and Catering to celebrate him reaching the rank of brigadier general – an achievement that is no small feat. The promotion places him in a new echelon of leaders whose service continues past 30 years of service. Of the approximately 460,000 serving on active duty in the Army, only between 200 and 300 are brigadier general or higher at any given time.
“That’s the kind of senior leader that he’s getting ready to be,” said Lt. Gen. John B. Morrison Jr., deputy chief of staff for the Army, G-6, and host of the ceremony.
Morrison described Howard as a “humble servant-leader” whose “leadership, vision, and most importantly the way he manages, talks and takes care of people” is “second to none.”
Howard has held a variety of command and staff positions around the world, including that of Morrison’s executive officer for two years. He has deployed to Iraq with the 44th Expeditionary Signal Battalion and to Afghanistan as part of U.S. Army Central.
Born and raised in the small southwestern town of Blakely, Ga., Howard largely credits his success to his family and humble upbringing. Taking to the podium during his ceremony, Howard fought tears as he scanned the room – many of them standing because all chairs were taken.
Among those in attendance were former battle buddies he served with – one who Howard vividly remembers prayed over him as a on Sept. 11, 2001 as events were unfolding. Another group consisted of college classmates and others from various periods of Howard’s career, which spans 35 years.
Howard emphasized that he would never have gotten to where he is today without others’ support and belief in him. Naming some of the people who have impacted his life, many of them lifelong mentors, Howard said, “There’s plenty of you out there that have played a role informally or formally, and you’ve been cheering me on all along the way. People pulled me, they pushed me … and so here I am.”
Howard insists it was a “family decision” to continue to serve, reiterating that he could not have gotten this far without the love and support his wife and children. Despite multiple moves, deployments, and inevitable hardships that can with serving, Howard believes his family is “more resilient, successful, and confident” largely due to their diverse experiences through the military.
“I always tell people that we didn’t survive the Army as a family; we thrived,” Howard said. “I really do believe that.”
Howard enlisted in the Georgia Army National Guard in 1989, receiving a 4-year scholarship to North Georgia College (now the University of North Georgia). Upon earning a bachelor’s degree from NGC in 1993, Howard commissioned into the Signal Corps. He would later graduate from the Air Command and Staff College with a master’s degree from the Air University at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama, while simultaneously serving in the Army. He and his wife, Lisa, have been married for 29 years. They have two children, Madeline and Lucas.
The promotion ceremony was broadcast live and can be found on the U.S. Army Signal Regiment Facebook page here.
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