YONGSAN GARRISON, Republic of Korea - Running an Army Garrison may be likened to running a small city back in the States, so having the right leadership is critical to managing everything from traffic lights to childcare. Recently, U.S. Army Garrison-Yongsan announced the appointment of Paul Cramer as the Deputy to the Garrison Commander to support Col. Dave Hall in the challenging, yet rewarding duty of running a Community of Excellence in the heart of Seoul.

He most recently served as the Chief of Public Works at IMCOM-Korea and his other assignments include serving as the Director of Public Works for Fort Polk, Louisiana and Fort Irwin, California.

An experienced civil engineer by trade and seasoned executive manager, Cramer says he is looking forward to building upon the Garrison's success.

"We'll continue providing the absolute best support to the community and continue to work as a team to support the Commander and prepare the Garrison to support future operations."

For the Yongsan community, future operations means increasing command sponsorship and preparing for eventual transformation.

"For USAG-Yongsan, these two concepts are polar opposites. The Garrison staff is increasing family services to support normalization while simultaneously developing closures plans that will take affect once facilities at USAG Humphreys are complete."

Even with transformation on the horizon, Cramer says that serving in Korea is a rewarding experience.

"These are exciting times to be stationed in Korea, both personally and professionally. Koreans are a generous and loyal people. I take great pride in working with them."

The son of a career Noncommissioned Officer, Cramer added that the many opportunities for positive change in the Army are one of the things that draw him to public service.

"First off, I think it is an honor and privilege to work here at USAG-Yongsan. Working for the U.S. Army provides me the opportunity to work in jobs that are challenging and rewarding."

Hall said he is looking forward to bringing Cramer's leadership, qualifications, and professionalism to the Garrison team.

"He has a broad range of experience in directing matters critical to Garrison operations: resource management, engineering and environment, community activities, family programs, logistics, safety, plans, training, security operations, and personnel management. I am confident he is going to hit the ground running and make a positive impact in this community. We are happy to welcome him into the USAG-Yongsan family."

He will officially begin his assignment at the Garrison this Monday Nov. 9.

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