Thursday, May 19, 2016

USAREC Center Leader Geared up for Best Warrior Competition


Center Leader Sgt. 1st Class Joseph Frost with Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Snow, Brig. Gen. Donna Martin, and Command Sgt. Maj. Anthony Stoneburg.
Maj. Gen. Snow, Sgt. 1st Class Frost, Command Sgt. Maj. Stoneburg and Brig. Gen. Martin.

 By U.S. Army Recruiting Command Public Affairs

Sylva, North Carolina, Center Leader Sgt. 1st Class Joseph Frost loves a challenge.

"Challenge is what drives me to be successful," said Frost, who was named the U.S. Army Recruiting Command Center Leader of the Year May 5. "If I'm not challenged, then I won't do my best. Any situation where I'm challenged to my limits, where I have to push myself beyond my own expectations, is what makes me successful."

That mindset will serve him well in August when he competes at the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command 2016 Best Warrior competition at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, for the chance to move on to the Department of the Army level Best Warrior Competition in September.

"It is quite a shock," Frost said. "I was extremely surprised to even be selected as the Center Leader of the Year, so being selected to represent the whole command at U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) is a huge honor for me."

Frost's battalion commander, Lt. Col. Robert Garbarino, who leads the Columbia Recruiting Battalion, said he is not shocked at Frost's selection, calling him a great NCO and center leader.

"He reopened the Sylva Recruiting Center earlier this year and made an immediate impact on our recruiting mission," Garbarino said. "Under his leadership, the Sylva Center has consistently met or exceeded the phase line missions. This has not been an easy task -- he had to break into a previously underworked market, build rapport with his assigned schools, and develop a supportive network in the community."

Initially a Department of the Army selected recruiter, Frost's first assignment was with Long Island Company from 2005-2008. He requested a year extension because he wanted to stay in recruiting, but in 2009 he decided to go back to his job as a 13M, rocket artilleryman, to gain more leadership experience, before reclassifying to a 79R. He volunteered to return to USAREC in 2014. Immediately upon his assignment to Sylva Center in May 2015, he was sent to the Center Leader Course at the Recruiting and Retention School at Fort Knox.

Frost said he loves recruiting because it allows him to make a difference in others' lives.

"I can share my life experiences with other people and show them how the Army has made me the successful person I am today," Frost said. "I also enjoy recruiting because I am involved with the most important mission of the Army, which sustains my excitement when I drive to work every day."

The Best Warrior Competition recognizes Soldiers who demonstrate commitment to the Army Values, embody the Warrior Ethos, and represent the force of the future.

Command Sgt. Maj. Anthony Stoneburg, USAREC's senior enlisted leader, said he was excited to see a 79R center leader with the highest score at the end of the Annual Awards Board. He added he is confident Frost's diverse range of skills make him the best qualified to represent USAREC at the next level.

Garbarino echoed Stoneburg's confidence in Frost's abilities.

"He is everything you want in a noncommissioned officer -- technically proficient, tactically savvy and physically fit," the battalion commander said. "He sets high standards for the Sylva Center and leads his team from the front to achieve those goals ... He is not content with the status quo, and this carries over into how he operates his center. He constantly seeks ways to improve his personal performance and that of his Soldiers."

Frost said he is looking forward to it.

"I'm going to study, practice and prepare, but I am ready," he said. "I'm highly competitive, ready to represent the command, and bring home the win."

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