31st MDG welcomes new commander

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Julius Delos Reyes
  • 31st Fighter Wing Public Affairs
AVIANO AIR BASE, Italy --  The 31st Medical Group welcomed its new commander during a change of command ceremony May 20 at the Personnel Alert Holding Area here.

Col. (Dr.) Linda Lawrence took the reigns from Col. (Dr.) Patrick Storms, who relinquished command after more than two years of service to the 31st MDG. Brig. Gen. Scott J. Zobrist, 31st Fighter Wing commander, presided over the ceremony.

"General Zobrist, thank you for your trust in me as a leader," said Colonel Lawrence. "I am humbled and honored and will do my best to serve you and the men and women you have given me the privilege to lead."

During the ceremony, Colonel Lawrence challenged the 31st MDG men and women to "leave the 31st MDG better than you found it."

"You have an amazing reputation of excellence and should be proud of your accomplishments," Colonel Lawrence said. "But there is still more we can do. As you know well, the ops tempo in this wing is high and the future brings new obstacles and challenges. We cannot let complacency become part of our practice, but instead keep pushing the boundaries of success through our imagination and willingness to accept risk."

In addition, the 19-year Air Force veteran asked the 31st MDG to do the right thing. She said Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had it right when he said, "The time is always right to do the right thing."

"Last but not the least, I want you to have fun," Colonel Lawrence said. "Take it from the doc, laughter is scientifically proven to be a great medicine and attitude is altitude. And our attitudes start at home so let's take care of our families as we do our wingman."

Colonel Storms gave his appreciation to the 31st FW, his staff and his wife.

"It would have been so easy for you to lose your way, inspection after inspection, each preceded by and long and painful preparation," he said, addressing the 31st MDG. "Deployment support, medical readiness training, one distraction after another and each one labeled as job one. I'm stunned, amazed and gratified that you knocked each pitch out of the park, but what has impressed me the most is that you never took your eye off the prize."

During Colonel Storm's tenure, the 31st MDG received an outstanding Health Services Inspection, perfect Joint Commission survey, three surety inspection wins and two Energy Star recognitions.

"The prize is now and has always been the remarkable way you care for our patients," Colonel Storms said. "You treat patient care like a sacred calling, you have routinely inconvenienced yourselves for the benefit of our patients and you meet the ultimate access standard."

Colonel Storms said he is thrilled to pass the flag to Colonel Lawrence.

"She is an exceptionally capable and nationally recognized emergency physician, she has held critical leadership roles at our biggest medical facilities and she has been battle tested as the medical operations squadron commander at Balad Air Base, a stomping ground that I know only too well," Colonel Storms said. "I am confident in her abilities, I know that her heart is in the right place, and I can step away secure in the knowledge that you are in very good hands indeed."

Colonel Lawrence comes to Aviano from Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, where she served as the 59th Emergency Medical Squadron commander at Wilford Hall Medical Center. She commanded a 184-person staff responsible for prehospital emergency medical service and medical care to more than 214,000 beneficiaries.

Colonel Storms is leaving Aviano to assume the position of chief of Medical Modernization Division for the Headquarters Air Education and Training Command at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas.