FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa. \u2013 The Pennsylvania Army National Guard activated the 856th Combat Engineer Company \u2013 Infantry during a ceremony at here July 26, officially establishing the unit under the 56th Mobile Brigade Combat Team.<\/p>\n
The activation supports the 56th MBCT\u2019s ongoing transformation as the brigade adapts its force structure to meet future operational requirements while expanding its combat engineering capabilities in support of infantry operations.<\/p>\n
The company is headquartered in Spring City, Pennsylvania, with a detachment located at Fort Mifflin in Philadelphia.<\/p>\n
The ceremony featured the unfurling of the company guidon, formally marking the establishment of the 856th Combat Engineer Company \u2013 Infantry and the beginning of the unit\u2019s legacy within the Pennsylvania Army National Guard.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I had the distinct honor of taking command in June of 2024, we were Bravo Company, 876th Brigade Engineer Battalion,\u201d said Capt. Richard L. Taylor III, commander of the 856th Combat Engineer Company \u2013 Infantry.\u201cThree different unit designations, two different brigades and multiple battalion alignments\u2014all in a span of just two years.\u201d<\/p>\n
Taylor said the company has adapted through each organizational change while remaining focused on readiness and mission accomplishment.<\/p>\n
\u201cThrough every new chain of command and every shift in organizational structure, this company never wavered,\u201d Taylor said.\u201cYou adapted to different battalions, integrated into different brigades and continued to execute.\u201d<\/p>\n
The company provides combat engineering capabilities that support infantry forces through mobility, survivability and breaching operations, enabling freedom of maneuver during combat operations.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe do this to ensure that our infantry brothers and sisters can close with and destroy the enemy,\u201d Taylor said.<\/p>\n
Col. Christopher McLaud, commander of the 56th MBCT, said the activation represents more than the establishment of a new unit.<\/p>\n
\u201cAn activation ceremony is more than the establishment of another unit on an organizational chart,\u201d McLaud said.\u201cIt is the beginning of a legacy.\u201d<\/p>\n
McLaud challenged the company\u2019s leaders to build a culture founded on discipline, trust and stewardship.<\/p>\n
\u201cSet high standards, enforce discipline with fairness, develop your junior leaders and never lose sight of your obligation to take care of Soldiers and their families,\u201d McLaud said.<\/p>\n
Taylor said the company is scheduled to transition Oct. 1 to the 856th Combat Engineer Company \u2013 Mobile under the 55th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade but emphasized that the organization\u2019s purpose will remain unchanged.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo matter what brigade patch is on our shoulders, no matter what battalion headquarters we report to, our mission remains exactly the same. We train to absolute lethality. We take care of one another. And we accomplish every mission to the highest standard, without excuse,\u201d Taylor said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa. \u2013 The Pennsylvania Army National Guard activated the 856th Combat Engineer Company \u2013 Infantry…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":254804,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[28,30,29],"class_list":["post-254803","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-pennsylvania","tag-pennsylvania","tag-pennsylvania-headlines","tag-pennsylvania-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/254803","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=254803"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/254803\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/254804"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=254803"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=254803"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=254803"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}