Kevin R. Wendel
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Kevin R. Wendel (born ) is a retired officer of the
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
. He attained the rank of major general, and his assignments included interim commander of
First United States Army First Army is the largest OC/T organization in the U.S. Army, comprising two divisions, ten brigades, and more than 7,500 Soldiers. Its mission is to partner with the U.S. Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve to enable leaders and deli ...
, commander of
First Army Division East First Army Division East is a division of the First United States Army. With its new role, the First Army developed two subordinate multi-component headquarters – one division to support the eastern United States and the other to support the ...
, commander of the 20th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and high-yield Explosives Command at
Aberdeen Proving Ground Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG) is a U.S. Army facility located adjacent to Aberdeen, Harford County, Maryland, United States. More than 7,500 civilians and 5,000 military personnel work at APG. There are 11 major commands among the tenant units, ...
,
Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
, and commander of 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division.


Early life and education

Kevin Robert Wendel was born in
Bridgewater Township, New Jersey Bridgewater Township is a Township (New Jersey), township in Somerset County, New Jersey, Somerset County in the U.S. state of New Jersey, located within the heart of the Raritan River, Raritan Valley region. Situated within Central Jersey, Cen ...
circa 1957, the son of Fred W. Wendel and Marie Elizabeth (Burns) Wendel. In 1975, he graduated from Bridgewater-Raritan High School West in
Bridgewater, New Jersey Bridgewater Township is a Township (New Jersey), township in Somerset County, New Jersey, Somerset County in the U.S. state of New Jersey, located within the heart of the Raritan River, Raritan Valley region. Situated within Central Jersey, Cen ...
. Wendel graduated from
Valley Forge Military Academy and College Valley Forge Military Academy and College (VFMAC) is a private boarding school (grades 7–12) and military junior college in Wayne, Pennsylvania. It follows in the traditional military school format with army traditions. The high-school p ...
with an associate degree in 1977 and received his commission as a second lieutenant via
Early Commissioning Program Early Commissioning Program (ECP) is a U.S. Army ROTC program that allows graduates of one of the nation's four Military Junior Colleges (MJC) to become commissioned officers in the reserve components (National Guard or Reserve) in two years, ...
. He graduated from
Furman University Furman University is a private university in Greenville, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1826 and named after Baptist pastor Richard Furman, the Liberal arts college, liberal arts university is the oldest private institution of higher l ...
with a bachelor's degree in business administration and completed the last two years of his
Reserve Officers' Training Corps The Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC; or ) is a group of college- and university-based officer-training programs for training commissioned officers of the United States Armed Forces. While ROTC graduate officers serve in all branches o ...
training there as an
Infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...
officer.


Military career


Field rank

After completing the Infantry Officer Basic Course, Wendel served in a variety of command and staff positions in the United States, as well as completing assignments in
South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...
,
Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
and
Southwest Asia West Asia (also called Western Asia or Southwest Asia) is the westernmost region of Asia. As defined by most academics, UN bodies and other institutions, the subregion consists of Anatolia, the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Mesopotamia, the Armenia ...
. He graduated from the Infantry Officer Advanced Course in 1983, after which he commanded Company D, 4th Battalion, 187th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division, followed by command of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3rd Brigade, 101st Division. Wendel graduated from the
United States Army Command and General Staff College The United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC or, obsolete, USACGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is a graduate school for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military ...
in 1991, after which he held a variety of field grade officer staff positions, and commanded 1st Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment. He subsequently graduated from the
United States Army War College The United States Army War College (USAWC) is a U.S. Army staff college in Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, with a Carlisle postal address, on the 500-acre (2 km2) campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks. It provides graduate-level instru ...
, after which he served as special assistant to the commanding general of the 1st Cavalry Division at
Fort Hood Fort Cavazos is a United States Army post located near Killeen, Texas. The post is currently named after Gen. Richard E. Cavazos, a native Texan and the US Army’s first Hispanic four-star general. The post is located halfway between Austi ...
,
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
. Wendel holds a master's degree in public administration from
Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania (Ship or SU) is a public university in the Shippensburg, Pennsylvania area. It is part of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. Founded in 1871, it later became the first teachers' college ...
, and earned a master's degree in Strategic Studies and Theory from the Army War College.


20th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and high-yield Explosives Command

From 2000 to 2003, Wendel commanded 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division. In August 2003, he was assigned as chief of the strategy division in the Strategic Plans and Policy Directorate (J-5) on the
Joint Staff The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) is the body of the most senior uniformed leaders within the United States Department of Defense, which advises the president of the United States, the United States Secretary of Defense, secretary of defense, ...
at
The Pentagon The Pentagon is the headquarters building of the United States Department of Defense, in Arlington County, Virginia, across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C. The building was constructed on an accelerated schedule during World War II. As ...
. From 2004 to 2005, Wendel was assigned as assistant deputy director for Strategy and Policy (J-5) on the Joint Staff. Wendel served as commander of the 20th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and high-yield Explosives Command (CBRNE) (originally called the 20th Support Command) at
Aberdeen Proving Ground Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG) is a U.S. Army facility located adjacent to Aberdeen, Harford County, Maryland, United States. More than 7,500 civilians and 5,000 military personnel work at APG. There are 11 major commands among the tenant units, ...
,
Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
from 2005 to 2008. His subsequent assignments included director of operational maneuver for
United States Army Central The United States Army Central, formerly the Third United States Army, commonly referred to as the Third Army and as ARCENT, is a military formation of the United States Army that saw service in World War I and World War II, in the 1991 Gulf Wa ...
in
Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...
, and deputy director of Operations for
United States Africa Command The United States Africa Command (USAFRICOM, U.S. AFRICOM, and AFRICOM) is one of the eleven unified combatant commands of the United States Department of Defense, headquartered at Kelley Barracks, Stuttgart, Germany. It is responsible for ...
.


General officer

From 2011 to 2013, Wendel was commander of
First Army Division East First Army Division East is a division of the First United States Army. With its new role, the First Army developed two subordinate multi-component headquarters – one division to support the eastern United States and the other to support the ...
; during 2013, he was interim commander of
First United States Army First Army is the largest OC/T organization in the U.S. Army, comprising two divisions, ten brigades, and more than 7,500 Soldiers. Its mission is to partner with the U.S. Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve to enable leaders and deli ...
following the departure of John Michael Bednarek to serve as Chief of the Office of Security Cooperation (OSC) in
Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
, and prior to the arrival of Michael S. Tucker to assume command of First Army. After leaving First Army, Wendel was assigned as commander of Combined Security Transition Command – Afghanistan (CSTC–A)/Ministerial Advisory Groups and Commander of
North Atlantic Treaty Organization The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental transnational military alliance of 32 member states—30 European and 2 North American. Established in the aftermat ...
Training Mission – Afghanistan. Wendel's first deputy commander with (CSTC–A) was Harold J. Greene, who was killed in action in August 2014. Wendel completed this assignment in October 2014, and was succeeded by Todd T. Semonite.


Awards

Wendel received the
Army Distinguished Service Medal The Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a military decoration of the United States Army that is presented to soldiers who have distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious service to the government in a duty of great responsibility. ...
for his accomplishments while in command of the
20th CBRNE Command The 20th CBRNE Command is the United States Army headquarters for CBRN defense, defense against Chemical warfare, Chemical, Biological warfare, Biological, Radiological warfare, Radiological, Nuclear weapon, Nuclear, and high-yield Explosives (CB ...
, and again for his success while in command of
First Army Division East First Army Division East is a division of the First United States Army. With its new role, the First Army developed two subordinate multi-component headquarters – one division to support the eastern United States and the other to support the ...
and
First United States Army First Army is the largest OC/T organization in the U.S. Army, comprising two divisions, ten brigades, and more than 7,500 Soldiers. Its mission is to partner with the U.S. Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve to enable leaders and deli ...
.


Family

Wendel is the husband of Denise Jane Kaiser of Bridgewater, New Jersey. They graduated from high school together, and were married in 1979. Kevin Wendel is one of four sons born to Fred and Marie Wendel; his brothers include Jeffrey, a retired
commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...
in the
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
, Dale, and Greg, also a retired Navy commander.


References


Sources


Internet

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Newspapers

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Books

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wendel, Kevin R. 1950s births Living people Bridgewater-Raritan High School alumni People from Bridgewater Township, New Jersey United States Army generals United States Army personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Valley Forge Military Academy and College alumni Furman University alumni Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania alumni United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni United States Army War College alumni Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Military personnel from Somerset County, New Jersey Year of birth missing (living people)