Fort Bliss has new commanding general

With cannons firing and the marching band playing, outgoing Commanding General Stephen Twitty bid farewell to his troops at Fort Bliss during a change of command ceremony Wednesday morning.

“It has been an honor to be your commander,” Twitty said. “I could not be more proud of you and I continue to be in awe of what you do day in and day out to defend this great country. Its been a wonderful ride, god bless the soldiers on the field, god bless the great sun city, iron soldiers, army strong.”

Major General Robert P. White took over as Commanding General of the 1st Armored Division.

The ceremony was held at Noel Parade Field. El Paso Mayor Oscar Leeser and his wife were among the attendees who saw the transfer of flags symbolizing the change of commands.

Troops marched in front of the new commanding general and saluted him.

“General Twitty was such a good friend to El Paso,” White said. “We’re going to continue that. Emma and I are looking forward to one getting to know everybody, and meet everybody and becoming part of the family that’s here.”

White said he’s excited about the challenges to come.

“Our nation has asked that we have a ready force that can deploy anytime, anywhere in the world,” White said. “So I will take General Twitty’s priorities and I’ll tweak them a little bit because we’re all a little bit different.”