SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. -- Col. Christopher Spinelli, outgoing 932nd Medical Group commander, relinquished command to Col. Robert Garner, incoming 932nd MDG commander Aug. 3, 2024, during a change of command ceremony inside Hangar 1, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois.
During the ceremony, Col. Jeffrey Smith, 932nd AW commander, presented Garner with the 932nd MDG guidon, officially making Garner the acting commander for the 932nd MDG.
While Spinelli was commander of the 932nd MDG, the professional medical doctors, nurses, technicians, and support staff delivered medical assistance to the 932nd AW and support for other Department of Defense missions. He oversaw the establishment of the training affiliation agreement between Air Force Reserve Command and Mercy Hospital System that integrates Mercy civilian medical professionals with Citizen Airmen, which enables reservists to accomplish real-world training and fulfill medical readiness requirements. Under his command, he was twice awarded Air Force Reserve Command’s Reserve Outstanding Unit Award.
Garner has served alongside 932nd members for nine years. After separating from active duty, he served as a family physician and Individual Medical Augmentee (IMA) chief of medical staff at Scott AFB. After serving as an IMA, Garner was the Aerospace Medicine Squadron flight surgeon and chief of the medical staff. From May 2021 to May 2024, he served as the 932nd AMDS commander.
The 932nd MDG trains and deploys more than 350 medics around the world from the 932nd Aeromedical Staging Squadron and the 932nd Medical Squadron. The medical group also ensures its members are medically qualified for global deployments with services from the 932nd Aerospace Medicine Squadron, which provides worldwide medical services to the warfighter from the front line to the continental United States fixed medical treatment facilities.