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Maj. Gen. John C. Harris Jr. (left), Ohio assistant adjutant general for Army, administers the oath of office to newly promoted Brig. Gen. Steven E. Stivers.
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COLUMBUS, Ohio (02-10-17) — Soldiers and Airmen, both current and retired, along with friends, co-workers and Family gathered on the drill floor of the Maj. Gen. Robert S. Beightler Armory to witness the promotion of Col. Steven E. Stivers to brigadier general.
While a promotion to general officer in the Ohio National Guard is fairly unique in its own right, Stivers’ ceremony marked something that hasn’t occurred in more than 100 years.
Stivers, who becomes the director of joint staff for the Ohio National Guard after more than 30 years of military service, is also the first ONG general officer in more than 100 years to concurrently serve as a member of Congress. Relatively few people in U.S. history have held both such positions simultaneously.
Maj. Gen. Charles Dick is the last Ohio National Guard general officer who also was a sitting member of Congress. He was the principal sponsor of the Militia Act of 1903, which transformed the volunteer militias of various states into the modern National Guard, and continues to provide the framework for today’s Guard. Dick served in the ONG (1885-1909) while serving in the U.S. House (1898-1904) and Senate (1904-1911).
Stivers is currently serving his fourth term as a U.S. representative from Ohio’s 15th Congressional District, which is made up of 12 counties in Central and Southeast Ohio. Prior to running for Congress, he served in the Ohio Senate.
Stivers served overseas during Operation Iraqi Freedom in Kuwait, Iraq, Qatar and Djibouti, where he led 400 Soldiers and contractors. He received the Bronze Star for his leadership throughout the deployment. Stivers’ new military role as director of joint staff will include the coordination of National Guard elements that provide support to civil authorities during domestic emergencies. |
