NEW CUMBERLAND, Pa. –
In an event held May 30 at DLA Distribution Tobyhanna, Pennsylvania, the organization changed command.
Army Lt. Col. Jerome Barnard had commanded since October 2016. Under his leadership the Defense Logistics Agency Distribution Center Tobyhanna, Pennsylvania, was awarded the Michael E. Yost DLA Distribution Center of the Year - Medium for 2017.
The new commander, Army Lt. Col. Samuel D. Smith comes from the University of Memphis where he served as a professor of military science for the university’s Reserve Officer Training Corps.
Smith started his career as an enlisted soldier in a construction engineer battalion with the 82nd Airborne. He later earned his commission through officer candidate school in 2001.
Since that time he attended multiple schools to include the Quartermaster School Officer Basic Course, The Combined Captains Career Course and the Command and General Staff College.
His assignments over his career included a combat tour in Balad, Iraq, with the 3rd Infantry Division in 2010-2011 and another tour with the 3rd Combat Aviation Brigade at Camp Stryker near Baghdad, Iraq, in 2007-2008. He has held many duty positions at the battalion and brigade level. Smith also served with DLA Troop Support-Pacific from 2015-2017.
“I hope that my experiences will enrich yours and that together we can make this one of the finest warfighter support organizations in DLA,” said Smith. “I look forward immensely to a chapter filled with excitement and to getting to know and work with all of you.”