BUCKLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. -- The Headquarters Individual Reservist Readiness and Integration Organization is set to receive a new commander next month.
Col. Carolyn A. Stickell, who has led the organization responsible for IR management since 2015, will transfer command to Col. Kelli B. Smiley during a change of command ceremony at the Headquarters Air Reserve Personnel Center, June 12.
Colonel Stickell leaves HQ RIO to serve as chief of the Joint Force Support Division, U.S. Pacific Command.
Colonel Smiley currently serves as the director of ARPC’s personnel and total force services center, which provides personnel support to over 1 million Air Force Reserve, Air National Guard and Retied Airmen. Her full biography is available on the ARPC website.
HQ RIO is located at Buckley Air Force Base, Colorado. Its mission is to seamlessly integrate wartime-ready Individual Reserve (IR) forces to meet Air Force and combatant commander requirements.
HQ RIO first opened its doors on Feb. 1, 2014, and began transitioning management of the IR program from the Readiness Management Group as part of Air Force-directed manpower transformation initiatives. HQ RIO was officially activated on Oct. 1, 2014.
The organization is responsible for managing the readiness of the IR force and standardizing the processes associated with getting our IRs to the fight. Seven detachments and eight operating locations at geographically-separated bases around the world assist the headquarters in this mission, providing direct oversight and support to more than 8,000 IR Airmen. The headquarters is located within the Air Reserve Personnel Center, where synergies are leveraged across the personnel and financial management functions.
To learn more about HQ RIO and the Individual Reserve, visit www.arpc.afrc.af.mil/HQRIO.aspx.