When he was first commissioned into the Army, Curtis Buzzard thought he’d only be in for five years.
More than 30 years later, he is a major general wrapping up his two-year command of Fort Moore.
Buzzard’s time in the Army has been split across many installations and positions, including time as a military aide for former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, tours in Iraq and Afghanistan and Commandant of the of the Cadet Corps at his alma mater, West Point.
Buzzard’s time at Fort Moore is typical for the rotation of commanders. His predecessor, Maj. Gen. Patrick Donahoe, also led the fort for two years before his 2022 retirement. His return to Fort Moore more than 30 years after training at the Airborne School in 1990 introduced him to a new experience.
“I had never had the opportunity to serve in our Training and Doctrine Command, which is the institution of the Army where we train soldiers,” he said. “The biggest lesson for me is a tremendous appreciation for what goes on here at this installation.”
Buzzard is originally from Philadelphia. He said he received a piece of advice from a former boss who had also served at Fort Moore about the installation.
“He said, ‘What’s so great about this post is people come here to get better,’” Buzzard said. “And I really feel that way and I feel inspired by that idea.
“I really am deeply appreciative of what goes on here,” he continued. “And as I transition to whatever other jobs I do in the future, I’m going to really have great respect for what our drill sergeants and instructors do.”
Fort Moore was still called Fort Benning when Buzzard took over command July 2022. He oversaw the installation’s renaming process and the “incredibly emotional event” held to honor the Moore family.
“There’s a lot of great names to choose from but the Lt. Gen. retired Hal and Julie Moore were just the absolute best choice,” he said. “We really kind of won the lottery with that selection, and I think it’s one of the most formative things I’ve done in my entire career.”
Buzzard said the fort’s renaming was about far more than just the signs on the property.
“Now we have a new standard we got to live up to, and it’s the Moore standard,” he said. “[The Moores] were tremendous people of character that served here and were close to the community and somebody we should all try to live up to. I love to say, ‘People join the Army to be all they can be. They come here to do Moore.’”
The standard set by the Moores doesn’t just apply to the soldiers on base, though. Buzzard said he hopes the city’s connection to Fort Moore, which he described as “the best of any installation” he’s been, continues growing and strengthening.
“I got the chance to appreciate how much the community was involved in the name selection,” Buzzard said. “We wanted to... expose all the great things from Fort Moore to people outside the gates and increase that connection. I just can’t think of a place that is as tightly connected.”
As he reflected on his time at Fort Moore, Buzzard said some of his happiest moments came from watching the progress of more than 30,000 soldiers on base.
“You’re not just impacting a unit over a time of two years here, you’re impacting a generation of people across all different ranks,” he said. “Who else gets to have an impact like that? That’s what’s so powerful about this assignment and I’m going to miss it.”
Buzzard’s next assignment is not yet known. Maj. Gen. Colin P. Tuley will take over as commanding general of Fort Moore.
This story comes to GPB through a reporting partnership with the Ledger-Inquirer.
