INDIANAPOLIS – Indiana National Guard Adjutant General, Maj. Gen. R. Martin Umbarger, and Maj. Gen. Clif Tooley, Senior Mission Commander for the Atterbury-Muscatatuck Center for Complex Operations, announced the selection of Colonel Richard D. Shatto as the new commander of Camp Atterbury effective Dec. 1, 2013.
Col. Shatto will succeed Col. Ivan Denton who has commanded the installation since March 2011. Col. Denton has been selected for promotion to the rank of brigadier general and assignment to the National Guard Bureau in Washington, D.C.
Col. Shatto is a career engineer officer graduating from the US Army Officer Candidate School in 1987. He is a combat veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan and a career full-time employee of the Indiana National Guard. He commanded the 113th Engineer Battalion in Gary, Ind. during a 2004-2005 deployment to Iraq and most recently served as the Chief of Staff for the 38th Infantry Division in Kabul, Afghanistan. He began his full-time career as a Supply Officer at Camp Atterbury and has held key positions as Plans and Operations Officer, Director of Military Support, and 38th Infantry Division Chief of Staff prior to his current assignment as Director of Logistics.
“Col. Shatto is an exceptional officer with a track record of superior performance in difficult assignments in combat and in garrison,” said Maj. Gen. Umbarger. “He is the right leader to guide the post-conflict transition of Atterbury-Muscatatuck from a critical mobilization station to its pre-war status as a world-class national and regional training site and exercise platform.”
“Commanding Camp Atterbury is a homecoming for me. I have been privileged to work for and with the finest leaders the Indiana National Guard has produced,” said Shatto. “I appreciate the trust and confidence General Umbarger has placed in me, and I know with the support of the professional team at Camp Atterbury, we will continue to provide the very best in warrior resources, training and support.”
“The Indiana National Guard remains committed to our deep and enduring relationships with the communities of Columbus, Edinburgh, Nineveh, Franklin, and North Vernon who have shown such extraordinary support to Camp Atterbury and the Muscatatuck Urban Training Complex,” said Maj. Gen. Umbarger. “We are profoundly grateful for the outpouring of Hoosier patriotism.”
Col. Shatto will assume command of Camp Atterbury from Col. Ivan Denton during a change of command ceremony on Dec. 17, 2013.
