DISA employee selected for Army chaplain 'hall of fame'

by Renee Hatcher
Office of Strategic Communication and Public Affairs
February 28, 2022 

DISA’s Joint Operations Center Office Manager, retired Army Sgt. Maj. John Proctor was presented an Ancient Order of Saint Martin of Tours award from former DISA Chaplain Army Col. Robert Nay during the monthly Unit Ministry Team training Feb. 17 at Fort George G. Meade.

“John Proctor is a legend within the Army Chaplaincy,” said Nay, who currently serves in the Office of the Chief of Chaplains at the Pentagon. “His service in the Army Chaplaincy exemplifies the ideals and values of selfless caring for Army Soldiers and their families. His character, hard work and technical proficiency took him to the senior level of the noncommissioned officer corps.”

The award, signed by Army Maj. Gen. Thomas L. Solhjem, chief of chaplains, is given to chaplains and religious affairs specialists who have demonstrated the highest standards of integrity and moral character, displayed an outstanding degree of professional competence, selflessly served Soldiers and their families, and contributed to the promotion of the Army Chaplaincy. Getting this award is known throughout the chaplain community as making it into the Army Chaplain Corps “hall of fame.”

“For me to receive this award is extremely humbling, as I am grateful for the privilege of serving God and country,” said Proctor, who joined the Army in 1993. “It was a profound honor to serve alongside of great men of religious faith and bring highly valued religious support to Soldiers and their families. I do not regard myself to be worthy of such recognition, and readily give glory to God for it.”

A native of Cumberland, Maryland, Proctor served in the Army Chaplain Corps as a religious affairs specialist for 25 years and officially retired from active duty Nov. 30, 2018. Prior to retirement, Proctor served as the U.S. Army Cyber Command Chief Religious non-commissioned officer.

Throughout his career, Proctor served in various combat units including the 82^nd Airborne Division, 3^rd Infantry Division and the 101^st Airborne Division. He deployed to Haiti, Iraq and Afghanistan and served two tours of duty in Korea.

“The Chaplain Corps is in many ways more like a family to me than a mere military organization,” he said. “Sharing hardships, privations and dangers with Army teammates binds us together in ways too deep for words. This bond endures for me even after retirement.”

Proctor entered basic training on his 32^nd birthday, intending to only do four years and then return to civilian life. He said he was drawn to the Chaplain Corps because it matched his religious devotion with his desire to serve his country.

“Serving in the Army Chaplain Corps has been a tremendous privilege, honor, responsibility and pleasure,” Proctor said. “I loved the Chaplain Corps from the moment I met my first chaplain at basic training. The corps’ reputation for selfless service to God and country is something I aspired to live up to on a very personal level. The Latin words Pro Deo et Patria, For God and Country, were more than just a slogan to me. They were a sacred charter for giving my all to the U.S. Army in the name of my Lord and God Jesus Christ.”

According to his award nomination, Proctor “epitomizes the highest personification of the Army’s values, morals, ethics, principles, military expertise, virtue, stewardship, trust, loyalty, profession, leadership, and Warrior Ethos.” It also cited his “God-given talents and ability, unselfishness, selflessness, sacrificial, unconditional, devotion, dedication, and honorable discharge of God’s calling to serve as the U.S. Army Chaplain Assistant, Chief Religious Affairs NCO, and the U.S. Army non-commissioned officer for 25 years of active duty with over 20 months of combat deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan with zero loss of his Soldiers and leaders.”

As a religious affairs specialist, he integrated chaplains of various faiths and religions into military operations by foot, wheeled vehicle, track vehicle, helicopter, and parachute insertion. He supported thousands of worship services with logistics, administrative action, and armed security. He has also supervised hundreds of military memorial ceremonies to honor those service members who died in service.

Some highlights of Proctor’s contributions to the Chaplain Regiment include integrating branch efforts for the modular redesign of the Army in 2004-2005, drafting the top-to-bottom redesign of military occupational specialty designation for religious affairs specialists in 2006, serving on the Tiger Team that established the religious leader engagement policy for Multinational Forces-Iraq in Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2008 and authoring the joint force’s first religious area analysis of North Korea in 2010.

As a community volunteer, Proctor was instrumental in establishing the Traditional Latin Mass community at Fort Hood in Texas in 2015, which received national attention for its association with Medal of Honor recipient Chaplain Emil J. Kapaun.

In addition to this award, Proctor previously earned a Legion of Merit Medal and two Bronze Star Medals for outstanding service in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“My Army career was a great gift given to me by Almighty God and enabled by the sacrifices of my wife and children,” Proctor said. “It was an inestimable honor to serve with the great Soldiers of the Chaplain Corps to whom I will always be bound in both faith and service.”