By Stephen Satkowski
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers-Far East District Public Affairs
SEOUL, South Korea - The Republic of Korea-U.S. Alliance Friendship Association presented Col. Bryan S. Green, commander and district engineer, of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Far East District, with a Korean name at a ceremony at the Korea Ministry of National Defense club Dec. 3.
Green was conferred the name Pak Geon-taek, a name with very symbolic meaning and significance, according to Suh Jin-sup, association chairman.
“Pak (pronounced Bak) is derived from his first name Bryan, and Pyeongtaek, the future location of United States Forces Korea. Green’s first name Geon-taek is a combination of the Chinese characters Geon, meaning to construct, and Taek meaning to choose and also derived from Pyeongtaek,” said Jin-sup.
Green said the name chosen by the association symbolizes the important role that the alliance between the two countries and engineers in particular, plays in the defense of Korea.
“I have walked the construction sites on many of our installations here, and am very proud to say I have also walked a good portion of the nearly 12 kilometers of the remaining Seoul city wall,” said Green. Those walls brought the country peace and prosperity, providing a strong deterrence against enemies, just as the Ministry of National Defense and U.S. Forces Korea does today.”
The Far East District is currently in the process of expanding U.S. Army Garrison Humphreys into the largest U.S. Army garrison in Asia. The name is significant as Green has oversight over all the relocation construction.
“I think the choice of the Korean word ‘Taek’ in Col. Green's Korean name is very meaningful,” said retired Korean Maj.Gen. Park, Kye-soo. Park is the former director of the Ministry of National Defense – Defense Installations Agency.
“This signifies our trust and belief in Col. Green, that he will bring to completion what we have started in Camp Humphreys, in Pyeongtaek,” he said, “and make them a solid milestone for ROK-U.S. alliance of the 21st century.”
In the past the association has presented many American leaders with Korean names, including President Barack Obama, named O Han-ma; former Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates; and Chief of Engineers Lt. Gen. Thomas Bostick, named Park Bo-taek.
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