Kentucky Guard honors Col. Eddie Simpson after 35 years of service
Sometimes that meant pushing himself physically. Other times, it meant pushing Soldiers to become stronger and challenging organizations to rethink how they approached fitness and readiness.
Nearly 100 Family members, friends and fellow Soldiers gathered at the Boone National Guard Center, Aug. 21, to recognize Simpson and honor his retirement from the Kentucky Army National Guard. Among the audience were several generations of infantry leaders, including five former battalion commanders — a turnout Maj. Gen. Hal Lamberton, Kentucky’s adjutant general, said spoke to the respect Simpson earned throughout his career.
“That does not happen when you've got a retirement-type of ceremony if folks didn't think well of the person that they're recognizing,” said Lamberton.
Simpson’s career included five overseas operational deployments and assignments ranging from commander of the 1st Battalion, 149th Infantry Regiment — known as the “Mountain Warriors” — to deputy commander of Virginia Army National Guard’s 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, and most recently, commander of the Garrison Training Command, KYARNG.
Col. John Harvey, director of operations (G-3), KYARNG, emceed the ceremony.
Harvey described Simpson as an officer whose intensity could sometimes seem unconventional, but whose ideas repeatedly developed lasting programs, built relationships and improved Kentucky Soldiers.
“I said many times before that we were battalion commanders together, and he was better than all of us because he cared about everything so passionately,” Harvey said.
For Simpson, much of that identity began with the infantry.
Simpson entered military service in 1991 and later commissioned into the 1-149th. During his retirement remarks, he recalled considering a transfer to the Medical Service Corps after earning his degree and professional license in 1995.
Instead, he made himself a promise to never change branches as long as he was physically keeping up with the younger Soldiers.
“Well, the infantry kept me on and it kept me pretty driven,” said Simpson. “I stayed right where I belong.”
Col. Brian Gallavan, chief of staff for the 29th Infantry Division, served alongside Simpson in Virginia’s 116th IBCT while commanding 2nd Squadron, 183rd Cavalry Regiment. At the time, Simpson commanded Kentucky’s 1-149th, which was tactically assigned to the Virginia brigade.
Simpson’s efforts to build relationships ensured Kentucky Soldiers dually served as Kentucky Guardsmen and part of the Virginia brigade.
“Up, down and sideways, he just did a great job of unifying that team,” Gallavan said. “He has ingrained 1-149th into the 116th, and he really solidified that Kentucky-Virginia relationship.”
The relationship continued beyond command, when the two later served together while deployed to Kosovo.
If infantry defined Simpson professionally, physical fitness became one of his most recognizable trademarks. He twice qualified for the CrossFit Games, an international competition featuring some of the world’s fittest athletes.
In 2016, Simpson envisioned a program within the Kentucky Guard focused on improving the health, fitness and readiness of Soldiers. That effort developed into AXE Camp, years before the Army’s Holistic Health and Fitness (H2F) program became what it is today.
Master Sgt. Danielle Speier, noncommissioned officer in charge of Kentucky’s H2F program, recalled the early version of the program during the ceremony.
“I had the privilege of being at the very first original AXE Camp — the first holistic health and fitness camp — before H2F was even a conversation at the highest levels,” Speier said.
She said the early camps were demanding, but Simpson’s impact was felt beyond improved fitness scores.
“We got to see him change lives of Soldiers across the state,” Speier said. “Not too many people can say that.”
Nearly a decade later, he was surprised by how much of that vision had become reality.
“This program allowed me to be fully myself,” Simpson said. “It gave me the creative outlet to be passionate about the Army and to focus on what really matters, saving and improving the lives of our Soldiers.”
For Simpson, that may be one of the clearest measures of what he leaves behind.
During his farewell remarks, he identified AXE Camp and H2F, the 202-mile Mountain Warrior Memorial Ruck March across Southeast Kentucky, and the 1-149th’s relationship with the 116th IBCT among the initiatives he was most proud to see succeed beyond his own involvement.
“Seeing these programs endure and continue to serve our Soldiers is probably one of my greatest professional rewards,” Simpson said.
At Wendell H. Ford Regional Training Center, his tenure as commander of the GTC added focus on the facilities and resources available to support training and Soldier fitness.
Simpson helped move forward the creation of a multipurpose machine gun range, a trench warfare training facility, a UAS training lane, and several improvements to multiple fitness facilities.
After the formal remarks concluded, Harvey opened the floor and invited those gathered to tell stories about Simpson. Friends and colleagues told stories of workouts, training events and ideas that initially seemed nearly impossible.
Other speakers described Simpson quietly helping Soldiers and Families through some of their lowest moments — acts most of the people sitting in the auditorium would never know about.
For Lamberton, the influence Simpson had on others would ultimately be more significant than any individual assignment Simpson held.
“I believe we're a better organization for having had you with us,” Lamberton said.
Lamberton, a former commander of the Mountain Warriors himself, told Simpson that his impact would continue reaching generations of Soldiers long after his time in uniform ended.
Simpson’s remarks focused on service, tradition, and Family — including his Guard Family and the leaders who shaped his career.
He thanked the noncommissioned officers who kept him grounded, the GTC staff he described as among the most dedicated he had led, and the team that carried his early fitness initiative into the H2F program of today.
He also thanked his wife, Courtney, whom he credited with providing the foundation that allowed him to continue serving.
Simpson offered three guiding principles to the audience.
“I always choose the hard right over the easy wrong,” Simpson said. “Never accept ‘No’ for an answer. … I never accept defeat.”
For Simpson, retirement did not change the identity at the center of his career.
“Keep pushing the standard, keep taking care of each other and keep up the fight,” Simpson said. “I will always be a Mountain Warrior and always, always stand with you.”
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