Niagara Falls-based National Guard Cavalry Squadron gets new commander on Wednesday, July 28

Media Advisory

NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (07/27/2021) (readMedia)-- New York Army National Guard Lt. Col. Jason Secrest, a veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, will take command of the 2nd Squadron, 101st Cavalry Regiment during a ceremony at the Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station on Wednesday, July 28.

Secrest will take over from Lt. Col. Bradley Frank who has led the squadron since May 2019.

The 2-101 Cavalry is a part of the 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team and has units in Buffalo, Jamestown, Geneva, and Niagara Falls.

Members of the media are invited to cover the change of command ceremony.

WHO: Lt. Col. Jason Secrest, the incoming commander, Lt. Col. Bradley Frank, the outgoing commander, Col. Sean Flynn, commander of the 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, and Soldiers of the 2-101 Cavalry.

WHAT: A military change of command ceremony in which the colors, or flag, of the 2-101 Cavalry will be transferred from Frank to Secrest by Flynn, signifying the transfer of authority for the more than 400 Soldiers of the squadron. The tradition dates back to the days when the unit colors followed the commander, so a unit's Soldiers could see who they would follow into battle.

WHEN: Wednesday, July 28 at 11 a.m.

Members of the media must contact Master Sgt. Brandy Fowler at 716-253-0071 no later than 9 a.m. on July 28 to access to ceremony.

WHERE: U.S. Armed Forces Reserve Center, 2502 Rubin Way, Niagara Falls, NY 14304, on the Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station. Access through the main gate at 10405 Lockport Road.

BACKGROUND:

Lt. Col. Jason Secrest:

Lt. Col. Jason Secrest received his commission as a second lieutenant through the Officer Candidate School at Fort Indiantown Gap, Penn. Secrest served as a tank platoon leader, cavalry troop executive officer, and as troop commander for 1st Squadron, 104th Cavalry, Pennsylvania Army National Guard.

Secrest deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and as a peacekeeper with the Multi-National Force & Observers in Egypt.

After serving as a battalion logistics officer and assistant operations officer, he transferred to the New York Army National Guard to deploy as an Afghan Army mentor with the New York Stability & Transition Team.

Secrest has held multiple positions in the Army, National Guard Bureau, and New York National Guard staff, culminating in his assignment as Deputy Incident Commander for Joint Task Force Javits in support of COVID-19 response operations.

He is a graduate of the Armor Officer Basic Course, Scout Leader Course, Armor Captains Career Course, USMC Expeditionary Warfare School, Cavalry Leaders Course, Command and General Staff College, Reserve Component National Security Course, Defense Strategy Course and the Air War College.

Secrest holds two Bachelor of Arts degrees and a Master of Business Administration from York College of Pennsylvania, and a Master of Public Administration from Pennsylvania State University.

His awards and decorations include two Bronze Star Medals, two Meritorious Service Medals, five Army Commendation Medals, two Army Achievement Medals, six Reserve Component Achievement Medals, National Defense Service Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Global War On Terrorism Service Medal, Armed Forces Service Medal, Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal, Armed Forces Reserve Medal with M-device and silver hourglass, and the Combat Action Badge.

Secrest is an Associate Broker with Coldwell Banker Realty in Washington.

He currently resides in Washington, with his wife, Stacey.

The 2nd Squadron, 101st Cavalry Regiment:

The 2nd Squadron, 101st Cavalry Regiment is headquartered in Niagara Falls and is comprised of more than 400 Soldiers in four companies, known as troops. Elements of the squadron are located across Western New York in Buffalo, Jamestown, Niagara Falls and Geneva.

The 101st Cavalry Regiment was constituted in December 1920 and headquartered in Brooklyn, New York. The regiment was initially assigned to the 21st Cavalry Division.

The regiment was federalized in 1941 and saw combat in northwest Europe during World War II. Later in the war it was attached to the 12th Armored Division.

Troops of the 101st Cavalry captured German field marshal Albert Kesselring, as well as the Japanese ambassador to Germany in May 1945. Following the war, the 101st was inactivated in October 1945 at Camp Myles Standish, Massachusetts.

The regiment was reformed as the 101st Armored Cavalry Regiment in January 1950, headquartered again in Brooklyn. On March 16, 1959, the unit was retitled the 101st Armored Regiment, until 1963 when the unit was renamed the 101st Cavalry and reduced in strength to one squadron.

In 1993, the 101st was consolidated with the 1st Battalion, 210th Armor, taking the 210th's lineage but keeping its designation as the 101st Cavalry. The 1st squadron of the 101 Cavalry was disbanded in August 2006.

The 2nd Squadron is the reconnaissance squadron of the 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team. The 2nd Squadron also carries the lineage of the 1st Battalion, 127th Armor Regiment, which converted into the 2nd Squadron, 101st Cavalry when the New York National Guard reorganized in 2005-2006. The squadron deployed to Afghanistan in 2008 and again in 2012.

The Squadron, with additional support from the 27th IBCT, deployed to Ukraine in 2017 to support the training of Ukrainian soldiers.