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 ...

Raymond F. Rees was Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Training, Readiness and Mobilization from 2014 to 2019. He was appointed to that position as a career member of the Senior Executive Service on February 10, 2014. He is also a retired

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 ...

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 ...

who served as the adjutant general of

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

and was director of the

Army National Guard The Army National Guard (ARNG), in conjunction with the Air National Guard, is an organized Militia (United States), militia force and a Reserve components of the United States Armed Forces, federal military reserve force of the United States A ...

and acting chief of the National Guard Bureau. As adjutant general, Rees was responsible for providing the State of Oregon and the United States with a ready force of citizen soldiers and airmen, equipped and trained to respond to any contingency, natural or man made. He directed, managed, and supervised the administration, discipline, organization, training and mobilization of the Oregon National Guard, the Oregon State Defense Force, the Joint Force Headquarters and the Office of Oregon Emergency Management. He was also assigned as the governor's homeland security advisor. In these roles he developed and coordinated all policies, plans and programs of the Oregon National Guard in concert with the governor and

state legislature A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...

Early life

Raymond Frederick "Fred" Rees was born on September 29, 1944, in

Helix, Oregon Helix is a city in Umatilla County, Oregon, United States. The population was 184 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Pendleton– Hermiston Micropolitan Statistical Area. History Helix, a geometry term and a part of the ear, was original ...

. He graduated from Helix's Griswold High School in 1962 and the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

in 1966, and was commissioned 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 ...

of Armor.

Military career

Rees completed

Airborne Airborne or Airborn may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Airborne'' (1962 film), a 1962 American film directed by James Landis * ''Airborne'' (1993 film), a comedy–drama film * ''Airborne'' (1998 film), an action film sta ...

and Ranger training, and was assigned as a platoon leader with the

2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment The 2nd Cavalry Regiment, also known as the 2nd Dragoons, is an active Stryker infantry and cavalry regiment of the United States Army. The Second Cavalry Regiment is a unit of the United States Army Europe and Africa, with its garrison at the ...

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

. After completing several assignments, including two as commander of

troop A troop is a military sub-subunit, originally a small formation of cavalry, subordinate to a squadron. In many armies a troop is the equivalent element to the infantry section or platoon. Exceptions are the US Cavalry and the King's Troop Ro ...

s in the 2nd ACR, Rees went to

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...

for Jungle warfare training.U.S. House Appropriations Committee
Hearing Record
Department of Defense Appropriations for 2002, 2001, page 199 In December 1968, Rees was assigned to Vietnam, serving as Assistant Training and Operations Officer (S3 Air) for 2nd Battalion,

17th Cavalry Regiment The 17th Cavalry Regiment is a historical organization within the United States Army that began as a regiment of cavalry after the Pancho Villa Expedition. The unit was constituted on 1 July 1916 in the Regular Army as the 17th Cavalry at Fort ...

101st Airborne Division The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) ("Screaming Eagles") is a light infantry division of the United States Army that specializes in air assault operations. It can plan, coordinate, and execute multiple battalion-size air assault operati ...

and commander of Troop D, 2nd Battalion, 17th Cavalry.Oregon Statesman-Journal
Biography, Raymond F. Rees
July 2, 2005 After returning to the United States, Rees completed training as an Army Aviator. From March 1972 to August 1973 he was assigned to 1st Battalion, 17th Cavalry Regiment,

82nd Airborne Division The 82nd Airborne Division is an Airborne forces, airborne infantry division (military), division of the United States Army specializing in Paratrooper, parachute assault operations into denied areasSof, Eric"82nd Airborne Division" ''Spec Ops ...

. From August to November 1973 he was assigned to the

United States Army Reserve The United States Army Reserve (USAR) is a Military reserve force, reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the Army element of the reserve components of the United States Armed F ...

Control Group.State of Oregon
Biography, Raymond F. Rees
accessed May 10, 2013

Oregon National Guard and National Guard Bureau

Upon leaving the active army, Rees joined the Oregon Army National Guard. He advanced through several command and staff positions of increasing rank and responsibility, including command of

Company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of people, whether Natural person, natural, Legal person, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common p ...

C, 2nd Battalion, 162nd Infantry Regiment as a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

and 3rd Squadron, 116th Armored Cavalry Regiment as a

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

. From November 1986 to May 1987, he was commander of the 116th Armored Cavalry Regiment and was promoted to

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

. Rees also completed law school, practiced as an attorney for 18 months, and managed his family's farm. In May 1987, Rees was appointed Adjutant General of Oregon by Governor Neil Goldschmidt, the first of three times Rees has served in this position. He served until June 1991 and was promoted to

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

in 1988 and major general in 1990. From July 1991 to August 1992, Rees served as director of the Army National Guard, succeeding Donald Burdick. In September 1992 he was appointed vice chief of the

National Guard Bureau The National Guard Bureau is the federal instrument responsible for the administration of the National Guard established by the United States Congress as a joint bureau of the Department of the Army and the Department of the Air Force. It was cre ...

, where he served until January 1994. From January to July 1994, Rees served as acting chief of the National Guard Bureau. In August 1994, Rees was again named Adjutant General of Oregon by Governor Barbara Roberts. During this appointment, his second, he served a five-year term, until March 1999. That month, Rees was appointed as vice chief of the National Guard Bureau for the second time, and he served until August 2002. From August 2002 to April 2003 he was again acting chief of the National Guard Bureau. From April to May 2003 he completed his assignment as the NGB vice chief. Rees served as chief of staff for the United States Northern Command from May 2003 to June 2005. In July 2005 Rees was appointed Adjutant General of Oregon for the third time. Beginning in 2009, Rees commenced another four-year term as adjutant general, serving under both Governors Ted Kulongoski and

John Kitzhaber John Albert Kitzhaber (born March 5, 1947) is an American former politician who served as the 35th governor of Oregon from 1995 to 2003, and as the 37th governor of Oregon from 2011 until his resignation in 2015. A member of the Democratic Party ...

. Rees' final tenure as adjutant general was noteworthy for Oregon's increased participation in the State Partnership Program. In 2008 Oregon established a partnership with

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

. Oregon also established a partnership with Vietnam. During workshops and coordination meetings, Rees compared Vietnam War experiences with his counterparts in the Vietnam People's Army. In 2012 Rees announced that he would retire the following year, and a search began for his successor. Rees retired in a ceremony on July 13, 2013, with his official date of retirement as July 31, and his 47 years of service surpassed the tenure of most full (four-star) generals. His retirement ceremony was attended by former governor Kulongoski and

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

Frank J. Grass, the Chief of the National Guard Bureau, who presented Rees with the Distinguished Service Medal.

Return to the Pentagon

In February 2014, Rees began work as Deputy

Assistant Secretary of the Army Assistant Secretary of the Army is a title used to describe various civilian officials in the United States Department of the Army. Present Assistant Secretaries of the Army At present, there are five offices bearing the title of Assistant Secret ...

for Training, Readiness and Mobilization. In this role he had oversight responsibility for the army's preparation of soldiers to ensure they are ready for overseas deployment and other contingencies. He retired in 2019.

Education

In addition to his bachelor's degree from West Point, Rees completed his

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

degree at the University of Oregon School of Law in 1976. He is also a graduate of the United States Army Command and General Staff College (1977) and the Senior Reserve Component Officer Course at 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 ...

(1989).

Awards and decorations

In 2007, Rees received the

Raymond S. McLain Lieutenant General Raymond Stallings McLain (April 4, 1890 – December 14, 1954) was a senior United States Army officer. In the words of General George C. Marshall, Raymond S. McLain "gave great distinction to the term 'citizen soldier. His serv ...

Medal from the Association of the United States Army. On April 28, 2011, he was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Software Association of Oregon.SAO Press Release
/ref>

References

External links

* Video, , Thomas Hovie, Oregon Military Department, 2010 *, Oregon National Guard, 2013 {{DEFAULTSORT:Rees, Raymond 1944 births Living people Military personnel from Oregon United States Army generals National Guard (United States) generals United States Military Academy alumni United States Army aviators United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni United States Army War College alumni University of Oregon School of Law alumni Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Air Medal United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War Chiefs of the National Guard Bureau Oregon lawyers People from Umatilla County, Oregon