User:Jhilyard/James Earl Hilyard Jr

James Earl Hilyard Jr ...James Earl Hilyard Jr was born October 3, 1980 in Wuerzburg, Germany. His mother, Willie Mae Hilyard (nee Musick) and his father, James Earl Hilyard, were stationed at Conn Barracks in Schweinfurt, Germany. When he was just over 1 year old his father was reassigned to Fort Hood, Texas where he remained until 2002. During his time in Killeen, he graduated from Ellison High School and enlisted in the Texas Army National Guard. He completed basic training and AIT at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri in 1998 and 1999 respectively. During his time in the National Guard he was assigned to A Company, 176th Engineer Battalion in Waco, Texas. He also spent time assigned to Fort Bliss, Texas supporting the 76th Military Police Battalion (CID) and Joint Task Force North. In 2004 he transferred from the National Guard to the Regular Army at which point he was assigned to B Company, 16th Engineer Battalion, 1st Armor Division in Giessen, Germany. His second assignment in Germany was with A Company, 9th Engineer Battalion, 1st Infantry Division in Schweinfurt, Germany. During this assignment he was deployed to Baghdad, Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom 06-08 where he sustained serious injuries when his truck was struck by an Explosively Formed Penetrator (EFP) type of improvised explosive device (IED) also known as a roadside bomb. His injuries resulted in medical evacuation to Fort Bliss, Texas by way of Balad, Iraq and Landstuhl, Germany. After 7 weeks in the hospital and more than a dozen reconstructive surgeries, he was assigned to the Warrior Transition Battalion Fort Bliss. After 18 months of physical and occupational therapy and recovery, he was transferred to E Company, 2nd Combined Arms Battalion, 5th Brigade, 1st Armor Division, also known as the Army Evaluation Task Force (AETF) at Fort Bliss, Texas. During his time in 5/1 AD he tested and evaluated future combat systems taking a vital role in the development and progression of the United States Army. In 2010 5/1 AD began to dissolve into 2nd Brigade, 1st Armor Division and it was at this point he was transferred to 4th Brigade, 1st Armor Division. His injuries ultimately resulted in medical retirement in 2012 at which point he began the development of his company "Combat Applications Group: Tactical, Weapons, and Outdoors" also known as CAGTWO. CAGTWO specializes in firearms repair and customization, tactical instruction, and outdoor equipment.