Lt. Col. Danny Dudek is going to take command of Fort Lewis’ Warrior Transition Battalion tomorrow. He’ll take over from Lt. Col. K.C. Bolton, who is heading to Fort Sam Houston, Texas.

Dudek is also a wounded soldier. He was riding in a Stryker with his unit from 4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division in July 2007 when it struck an explosively formed penetrator, a particularly nasty version of a roadside bomb. The blast killed Cpl. Brandon M. Craig, a 25-year-old Maryland native.

In the handful of times I’ve talked with him, Dudek has struck me as one of those guys who’s usually in a good mood. I doubt this interaction had anything to do with the promotion, but I thought I’d pass along this story: In November, Dudek was tasked with showing Secretary of the Army Pete Geren around the battalion. He showed off a few of the rooms and answered questions about day-to-day functioning of the unit.

Geren asked a few questions about Dudek, then a major and the battalion executive officer. "Sir," Dudek told him, "I'd like to one day command this battalion."

Later, I was chatting with him about the opportunity to get the boss' ear about a promotion. "Hey, I was selling it," he said with a wide smile. "You don't get those opportunities too often."

Today's daily dose from DVIDS:

I Corps:
Army Celebrates, Soldiers Reflect

4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division:
Interview with Col. John Norris
Stryker Live Fire Exercises
Detainee Operations at JRTC