Womack readies for military retirement

The Rogers mayor will be honored Saturday.

— Mayor Steve Womack left City Hall on Friday and became Col. Steve Womack, a 30-year Army National Guardsman who was in Little Rock on Monday on military business andwas not scheduled to return untilWednesday. It's a precursor to a hectic October that will start in earnest with his retirement ceremony Saturday.

At 2 p.m. Saturday, Womack will be honored forthe last time as a National Guard colonel in a ceremony in LittleRock. On Sunday, he will transfer command to Col. Louis Landreth, whom Womack called a "great guy."

There are odds and ends Womack must clean up before he is officially removed from the Guard's ranks Oct. 31. And then, on Nov. 1, he will begin his life anew as a civilian, a position he admits he is not ready to assume.

Womack's military journey began on May 12, 1979, at ArkansasTech University in Russellville.

"It's been a long career; feels like it just started yesterday," Womack said Monday.

He will leave the National Guard as commander of the 233rd Infantry Regiment at Camp Joseph T. Robinson, but it's a tour of the Sinai Peninsula, beginning in 2002, that he said defines his career. Womack said the standard set by his unit continues to be the example for troops in peacetime,giving Arkansas soldiers a reputation nationwide.

"Arkansas Guardsmen today are among our most accomplished warriors," Womack said.

But success in the Sinai was defined more by the soldiers following Womack's lead than anything he specifically did, Womack said. He referred to his unit as a team - one of three teams hediscussed Monday - and took responsibility only for doing a job.

"I've just done what I've been asked to do," Womack said. "If I have distinguished our men and women in uniform, that would be something to be proud of."

While he is bidding farewell to one team, Womack's retirement will give him the opportunity to better serve the other two: his family and his city. He said he would have time to be a better mayor and family member.

"I want to offer my thanks and deepest appreciation for my city team and my family team," Womack said, noting that military success overseas often comes only when those who remain behind band together. It is a theme that has extendedwell beyond his tour in the Sinai. It's one weekend a month and two weeks a year, then a lot more when you have a command.

It's also a lot for the mayor to give up, even if it's not hard for his family.

"They realize my hobby has been military," Womack said of his family. "It's also been my sanity."

Womack described his military service as a release, an escape of sorts that added discipline that carried through the rest of his life.

"The decisions that Imake as an adult are decisions that have significantly been influenced by my military service," Womack said. "It's done a lot of things for me."

Something will replace the military - not in his heart, but it will at least fill in gaps in his schedule - but Womack hasn't picked out a new hobby yet. And despite city treasurer Jerry Hudlow's reported efforts to get the mayor on the green, Womack doesn't think golf is quite the game for him.

News, Pages 1, 7 on 09/29/2009

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