Kevin R. Wendel (born c. 1957) is a retired officer of the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

. He attained the rank of

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

, and his assignments included interim commander of

First United States Army First Army is the oldest and longest-established field army of the United States Army. It served as a theater army, having seen service in both World War I and World War II, and supplied the US army with soldiers and equipment during the Korea ...

, 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) (sometimes erroneously called Aberdeen Proving ''Grounds'') 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 ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, and commander of 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division.

Early life and education

Kevin Robert Wendel was born in

Bridgewater, New Jersey Bridgewater Township is a township in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. The township is both a regional commercial hub for Central New Jersey (home to Bridgewater Commons and different corporate headquarters) and is a bedroom suburb ...

circa 1957, the son of Fred W. Wendel and Marie Elizabeth (Burns) Wendel. In 1975, he graduated from

Bridgewater-Raritan High School West Bridgewater-Raritan High School (commonly abbreviated as BRHS) is a four-year comprehensive public high school. It is the lone secondary school of the Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District serving students in ninth through twelfth grad ...

. 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. Though military in tr ...

with an associate degree in 1977 and received his commission as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

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, i ...

. He graduated from

Furman University Furman University is a private liberal arts university in Greenville, South Carolina. Founded in 1826 and named for the clergyman Richard Furman, Furman University is the oldest private institution of higher learning in South Carolina. It became ...

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. Overview While ROTC graduate officers serve in all ...

training there as an

Infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

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 relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and

Southwest Asia Western Asia, West Asia, or Southwest Asia, is the westernmost subregion of the larger geographical region of Asia, as defined by some academics, UN bodies and other institutions. It is almost entirely a part of the Middle East, and includes Anat ...

. 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 The 327th Infantry Regiment (Bastogne Bulldogs) is an infantry regiment of the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) of the United States Army. During World War II, the 327th was a glider-borne regiment of the 101st Airborne Division. It fough ...

. He subsequently graduated from the

United States Army War College The United States Army War College (USAWC) is a U.S. Army educational institution in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on the 500-acre (2 km2) campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks. It provides graduate-level instruction to senior military offic ...

, after which he served as special assistant to the commanding general of the 1st Cavalry Division at

Fort Hood Fort Hood is a United States Army post located near Killeen, Texas. Named after Confederate General John Bell Hood, it is located halfway between Austin and Waco, about from each, within the U.S. state of Texas. The post is the headquarters ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. 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 Shippensburg, Pennsylvania. It is part of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. Founded in 1871, it later became the first teachers college in Pennsylvania. ...

, 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, that advises the president of the United States, the secretary of defense, the Homeland Security Council and the ...

The Pentagon The Pentagon is the headquarters building of the United States Department of Defense. It was constructed on an accelerated schedule during World War II. As a symbol of the U.S. military, the phrase ''The Pentagon'' is often used as a metony ...

. 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

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 which saw service in World War I and World War II, in the 1991 Gulf W ...

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...

, 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 U. ...

General officer

From 2011 to 2013, Wendel was commander of

; during 2013, he was interim commander of

following the departure of

John Michael Bednarek John Michael "Mick" Bednarek is a retired United States Army officer. He was chief of the United States Office of Security Cooperation in Iraq and former commander of the United States First Army. Bednarek took command of the First Army on April ...

to serve as Chief of the

Office of Security Cooperation United States Security Assistance Organizations (SAOs) are Federal Government of the United States military and civilian personnel stationed in foreign countries to manage security assistance and other military programs. SAOs are closest to these pr ...

(OSC) in

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

, and prior to the arrival of

Michael S. Tucker Lieutenant General Michael S. Tucker (born September 14, 1954) is a retired United States Army general who served Commanding General of the First United States Army from 2013 until 2016. He formerly served as the Commanding General of the 2nd In ...

to assume command of First Army. After leaving First Army, Wendel was assigned as commander of

Combined Security Transition Command – Afghanistan The Combined Security Transition Command – Afghanistan (CSTC-A, pronounced "see stick-uh") was a multinational, U.S. led, military organization during the War in Afghanistan War in Afghanistan, Afghan war, or Afghan civil war may refer to: *Co ...

(CSTC–A)/Ministerial Advisory Groups and Commander of

North Atlantic Treaty Organization The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

Training Mission – Afghanistan. Wendel's first deputy commander with (CSTC–A) was

Harold J. Greene Harold Joseph "Harry" Greene (February 11, 1959 – August 5, 2014) was a United States Army general who was killed during the War in Afghanistan. During his time with the United States Army, he held various commands associated with engineering ...

, 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. Th ...

for his accomplishments while in command of the

20th CBRNE Command The 20th CBRNE Command (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and high- yield Explosives or CBRNE) is the United States Army's Chemical, Biological, Nuclear, Radiological and high-yield explosives headquarters. Command Overview The 20th ...

, and again for his success while in command of

and

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. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

, 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 People from Somerset County, 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 New Jersey