Binghamton-based NY National Guard Battalion will get new commander this month

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Lt. Col. Brendan Gendron

BINGHAMTON, NY (06/18/2020) (readMedia)-- The New York Army National Guard's Binghamton-based 204th Engineer Battalion will get a new commander during a ceremony scheduled for the afternoon of Saturday, June 27.

Lt. Col. Brandon Gendron, a full-time National Guard officer who currently serves as the New York Army National Guard's state training officer, will take command of the battalion, which has elements in Horseheads, Walton, Camp Smith Training Site near Peekskill, Kingston, and Buffalo.

Gendron, a resident of Simsbury, Connecticut will replace Lt. Col. Wing Yu, who has commanded the battalion since 2017. Gendron has served in the 204th as the commander of the battalion's Headquarters and Service Company.

Yu, a resident of Watertown, will become the executive officer of the 153rd Troop Command, which is headquartered in Buffalo.

"I am humbled and honored to have served with the men and woman of the 204th Engineer Battalion," Yu said. My time with the Battalion will be the a major high point of my military career."

The 204th Engineer Battalion is one of two engineer battalions in the New York Army National Guard.

The battalion often plays a key role in New York state emergency response missions, and has deployed Soldiers to Afghanistan.

"The 204th has a diverse and important mission not only in the U.S. Army but also here at home," Gendron said. "I look forward to serving alongside the officers, NCOs and Soldiers of the battalion."

Gendron was commissioned as an Engineer Officer in June 2004.

His assignments have included command of the Headquarters and Service Company of the 204th Engineer Battalion; Commander of Company D, 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry; fire support officer for the 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry, personnel officer and operations officer for the 1st Battalion, 258th Field Artillery and executive officer of the 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry and the 106th Regional Training Institute. He has deployed to Kuwait.

He is a graduate of the Army Command and General Staff College and the State University of New York at Buffalo. He also holds a Master's Degree in Business Administration from Nichols College.

His awards include the Meritorious Service Medal, the Army Commendation Medal, the Army Achievement Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, the German Armed Forces Proficiency Badge.

Gendron has been honored with the Field Artillery Order of St. Barbara and the Infantry Order of Saint Maurice for accomplishment.

He and his wife Suzanne have an 8-year old daughter, Kyleigh, and a 3-year old son, Jack.

Yu is a veteran of the Afghan War and served as an enlisted Soldier after joining the New York Army National Guard in 1987. He was commissioned in 1994.

He served on active duty with the 2nd Infantry Division, the 1st Infantry Division, and the 10th Mountain Division before rejoining the New York Army National Guard in 1999.

Yu has served in a number of leadership positions and has deployed to Kuwait as well as Afghanistan. From 2016 to 2017 he was assigned as liaison to the 10th Mountain Division at Fort Drum to stand up a new National Guard element-the Main Command Post Operational Detachment – which provides Guard and Reserve Soldiers to fill out positions in the division headquarters.

Yu holds a degree in Avionics from Vaugh College of Aeronautics and Technology, a Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering and a Master's Degree in Environmental Technology from the New York Institute of Technology. He is a graduate of the Army Command and General Staff College.

His awards include the Meritorious Service Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal, the NATO Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, and the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, the Korea Defense Service Medal and the Airborne Badge.