COMMANDER’S REPRESENTATIVE
Larry M. Cruz
Larry Cruz assumed his duties as Commander’s Representative in November of 2019. In this position, Cruz is responsible for staff supervision and mission execution for Hawthorne Army Depot.
Prior to his selection as Deputy to the Commander in 2014, Cruz was the Command Executive Officer for the 108th Training Command in Charlotte, North Carolina, which is an Army Reserve 2-Star General Officer National Training Command, ADCON to the United States Army Reserve Command and OPCON to TRADOC. As such, his duties included oversight of all fulltime staff and acting on a day-to-day basis on behalf of the commander.
Cruz began his civil service career in 2004 as a Supervisory Staff Administrator for the 647th Regional Support Group at El Paso, Texas. He remained there until 2007, at which time he transferred to the 108th Training Command in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Aside from his civil service career, Cruz spent 33 years in military service, retiring in 2015 as a Colonel. He enlisted into military service with the New Mexico Army National Guard where he served three years. In December 1984, he was commissioned a Second Lieutenant through the New Mexico Highlands University Army ROTC program.
In January 1985, Cruz began active duty as an Air Defense Artillery Officer, serving nine years before joining the Army Reserve in 1994. As an Army Reservist, he served as a Multifunctional Logistician, successfully commanding at both the battalion and brigade level, as well as holding a variety of General Officer staff positions. Cruz has received numerous awards throughout his military career, to include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, and five Meritorious Service Medals.
A native of Springer, New Mexico, Cruz is a graduate of New Mexico Highlands University in Las Vegas, New Mexico, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in 1984 in Sociology/Anthropology and his master’s degree in education in Guidance/Counseling in 1998. He also graduated from the U.S. Army War College in 2008, earning a master’s degree in strategic studies.
Cruz has received numerous letters and certificates of appreciation, recognition, and commendation from his civil service career, to include receipt of three Commander’s Awards for Superior Civilian Service.