An Assumption of Responsibility Ceremony in honor of the new White Sands Missile Range Command Sgt. Maj. Michael S. Cordery was held on May 25. WSMR Joint Service Military, civilians and off post partners gathered on the WSMR Organ Mountains Parade Field as Cordery assumed his duties as the new Senior Enlisted Advisor.

The master of ceremonies, Rocío Rangel, Optics Lead Process Engineer, opened the ceremony and the Post Chaplain Eric D. Park, provided the invocation. The event speaker, WSMR Commander Brig. Gen. Eric D. Little reflected on the hiring process in selecting Cordery for the position.

“Command Sergeant Major Cordery and Amanda are coming to us from Germany. His broad and diverse background in experience and his proven leadership are all reasons why he is here today. After narrowing down the best 189 Sergeants Majors the Army has to offer, Cordery was selected out of five exceptional candidates for this position. He stood out above all of them,” said Little. “He is a calm and confident leader and demonstrates tremendous character, presence, and intellect; all attributes the Army expects in its leaders. We are exceptionally fortunate to be welcoming Cordery as the Command Sergeant Major of White Sands Missile Range.”

“General Little and White Sands Missile Range leadership, thank you for welcoming me into this community and helping us with this transition. I can see the impact made on this community and on this command for the past two years. I look forward to working with you over the coming years. I also want to thank my wife, Amanda, for sticking next to me over the past 22 years and 18 moves that have taken us all over the world. Thank you for raising our two incredible sons and being the one constant in their lives,” said Cordery. “Testing the future, changing the world, truth in testing, be all you can be, rocket seven, ready to get to work.”

The ceremony ended with the Fort Bliss 1st Armored Division Band playing the Army song followed by a reception at the Frontier Club.