Surrounded by his wife and five children in person, and family and friends joining virtually from around the world, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Europe District’s Deputy Commander Maj. Daniel J. Fox was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel during a promotion ceremony at Wiesbaden, Germany Feb. 26, 2021.
Fox has been serving as the Deputy Commander for Europe District since arriving in Wiesbaden in October and said he’s enjoying getting acclimated.
“I can talk some of the details, but I’m still wrapping my mind around some of the bigger programs like European Deterrence Initiative, Polish-Provided Infrastructure, Humanitarian Assistance, our MILCON (Military Construction) programs, our NATO Support, AFRICOM support,” Fox said. “I’m just really happy to be here, I really appreciate the warm welcome the District gave us and I look forward to working with the team to achieve all of these important missions.”
A West Point graduate with a degree in mechanical engineering, the Army has taken Fox around the world over the past 17 years. Previous assignments and deployments have included Saudi Arabia, Fort Bragg in North Carolina, Afghanistan, Iraq, a return to West Point as an instructor, Alaska and Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington.
Part of that time in Alaska included serving as a project manager with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Alaska District. While there, Fox not only experienced working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, but with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers experience supporting overseas humanitarian efforts. While a captain in Alaska District, Fox worked in Alaska District’s International and Interagency Support Branch where he helped manage Pacific Command humanitarian assistance projects in several countries in Southeast Asia.
“I thought I’d be building hospitals and schools when I joined the Army and with the Corps of Engineers I really got to do what I joined the Army for,” Fox said “It was really similar to some of what we do here in Europe District, but for PACOM, so building emergency operations centers, schools, and clinics all around Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos and Bangladesh.”
Fox said his experience with the Corps of Engineers in Alaska was a big reason he sought out his current position with the Europe District.
“I love working for the Corps, it’s a very professional organization,” Fox said. “Generally people love what they do, they’re technical experts that work on some pretty challenging projects and it’s very personally rewarding to move those projects forward and support our stakeholders.