During a ceremony held at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst on April 8, Joint Base and 87th Air Base Wing Commander Gina M. Grosso was promoted from U.S. Air Force colonel to brigadier general. Above, Grosso addresses guests at the ceremony. Below, she receives her brigadier general’s star from Col. Brian O’Connor (whom Grosso married on April 9) and her father, retired Lt. Col. Gerald Grosso. PHOTOS BY DAVE BENJAMIN A s tears of joy filled her eyes, Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst and 87th Air Base Wing Commander Gina M. Grosso was promoted from U.S. Air Force colonel to brigadier general during a ceremony held at the base on April 8.
The 42,000-acre base is partially in Jackson and Plumsted in Ocean County, and in Wrightstown in Burlington County. It is home to units of theArmy, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and Air Force.
Joint Base and the 87th Air Base Wing provides installation support to more than 80 mission partners at the U.S. Department of Defense’s only tri-service joint base.
Among her many responsibilities, Grosso is responsible for providing mission-ready expeditionary airmen and sailors to combat commanders in support of joint and combined operations, said Brig. Gen. William Bender, U.S. Air Force Expeditionary Center commander, who presided during the promotion ceremony.
Grosso “is being promoted today to the executive board of the United States Air Force, and going forward she is expected to lead this big institution of ours,” Bender said. “The Air Force family needs her leadership, her vision and her personal character. She has the ability to reach out to others and bring together all of the services and missions here. Being promoted is not a pat on the back or a thank you for a job well done. Being promoted indicates your ability to succeed in the next rank.”
Bender said Grosso was being recognized for her creative energy and for her ability to take complex problems and solve them. He said Grosso will play an important role as the Air Force meets the challenges of the future.
He said Grosso has the ability to inspire others and to find success instead of failure, and he said she has the ability to find ways to take on the tough challenges.
“I would like to be the first to congratulate you as we promote you to brigadier general,” Bender said.
Among the guests in attendance at the ceremony were Grosso’s parents, retired Lt. Col. Gerald Grosso and Dr. Camille Grosso, her brother, Gerald Grosso II, and the man she married the next day, Col. Brian O’Connor.
U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates announced the presidential nomination of Grosso on Dec. 14 after President Barack Obama nominated her to be raised to the rank of brigadier general. The nomination was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on Dec. 23.
During the ceremony, Bender read the promotion orders.
“The President of the United States acting on the recommendation of the Secretary of the Air Force, has placed trust and confidence in the patriotism, integrity and ability of Gina M. Grosso,” Bender said.
Grosso told those in attendance, “I have served as a colonel for seven years in five different positions, and Joint Base McGuire-Dix- Lakehurst was the tipping point for my promotion. Serving all of you and especially the young service members has been the highlight of my career.”
Grosso, a Virginia native, entered the Air Force in 1986 as a Reserve Officer Training Corps distinguished graduate from Carnegie Melon University, Pittsburgh, Pa.
She earned a master’s degree in business administration from the College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, Va., and was a fellow at Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard University, Boston.
She attended Squadron Officer School at Maxwell Air Force Base in Alabama and earned a master’s degree in national security and strategic studies from the Naval Command and Staff College, Newport, R.I.
As a staff officer, she served as an operations analyst, personnel program analyst, Air Staff and Office of the Secretary of Defense action officer, Major Command Director of Manpower and Personnel, and Director of the Air Force Colonel Management Office.
Her command tours include Headquarters Squadron Section, Military Personnel Flight, Mission Support Squadron, and command of theAir Force’s sole Basic Military Training Group.
Grosso has commanded the 87th Air Base Wing since March 2009 and the joint base since October 2009.