Carson City residents' daughter promoted to rank of Army Major General
Submitted by Jeff Munson on Sun, 04/24/2022 - 11:50am
The commander of the Joint Transportation Reserve Unit for U.S. Transportation Command was recognized for her recent promotion to major general while meeting with Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and Coast Guard Reservists during a quarterly training weekend at USTRANSCOM headquarters April 9, 2022.
U.S. Army Reserve Maj. Gen. Cheryn L. Fasano received her promotion via Congressional authorization effective Feb. 17, 2022. Fasano resides in San Antonio, Texas, with Dr. John Fasano, her husband of 27 years and a retired U.S. Army Reserve colonel. Her parents are Carol Swanson, a retired Army colonel nurse, and Charles Swanson, a retired lieutenant colonel and 1967 U. S. Military Academy at West Point graduate; they currently live in Carson City, Nev.
In May 1989, Fasano graduated from Indiana University, commissioned through the Army Reserve Officer Training Corps, Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis. She earned three masters’ degrees: Texas State University, University of Phoenix, and U.S. Army War College.
While she hosted a small ceremony with family in Texas in February, the recent training weekend presented the first opportunity for the general to address her joint troops in person since promoting.
“I am humbled by this honor bestowed on me,” said Fasano. “The past nine months integrating into the command team and leading the JTRU have been extraordinary. With 25% of our force deployed at any given time, operations like Operation Allies Refuge in Afghanistan and the ongoing support of Ukraine further highlight the value JTRU members bring in support of the vital USTRANSCOM mission.”
Fasano also serves as the mobilization assistant to U.S. Air Force Gen. Jacqueline D. Van Ovost, USTRANSCOM commander, through the Joint Reserve Component Directorate, where she advises Van Ovost on all matters related to Reserve Component support to USTRANSCOM – one of the nation’s 11 combatant commands – and its component commands.
“This promotion is about the U.S. Army having full faith and confidence in what Cheryn will continue to do as a leader,” said Van Ovost. “I am proud of her work and have high expectations for how the JTRU ultimately supports USTRANSCOM’s mission and readiness.”
During her promotion ceremony, Fasano stressed her fortune of having had great mentors and general officers who encouraged her and others along the way, not to ever leave or quit, but let the Army decide when a soldier is done – to take command and to do the hard jobs. She said of that advice, “It’s really amazing, and I appreciate the opportunity to continue to serve.”
In commanding the JTRU, Fasano came with extensive leadership, logistics and operational experience, having commanded previously at every level. Leading the JTRU is unique, as the nation’s first and only joint reserve unit in the Department of Defense.
As Maj. Gen. Fasano said to the JTRU last weekend, “We know that at USTRANSCOM, people are our most important asset. We appreciate the effort you put forward to be ready now and for the future, and for your daily work that helps create a decision advantage for our leadership. Together, we deliver.”
USTRANSCOM exists as a warfighting combatant command to project and sustain military power at a time and place of the nation’s choosing. Powered by dedicated men and women, USTRANSCOM underwrites the lethality of the Joint Force, advances American interests around the globe, and provide our nation's leaders with strategic flexibility to select from multiple options, while creating multiple dilemmas for our adversaries.
In the photos:
U.S. Army Reserve Maj. Gen. Cheryn Fasano, who serves as mobilization assistant to the U.S. Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM) commander and as commander of USTRANSCOM’s Joint Transportation Reserve Unit, poses with her family following a small ceremony in San Antonio, Texas, the weekend after her promotion date to major general Feb. 17, 2022. From left to right, husband Dr. John Fasano; Maj. Gen. Fasano; stepdaughter U. S. Navy Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Gabriella Fasano; stepson Andrew Fasano, Army veteran and currently Bexar County (Texas) deputy; mother Dr./Col. Carol Swanson, U.S. Army (Retired); and father Lt. Col. Chuck Swanson, U.S. Army (Retired).
U.S. Army Reserve Maj. Gen. Cheryn L. Fasano, commander, Joint Transportation Reserve Unit, U.S. Transportation Command, addresses her joint troops during the unit’s quarterly training weekend at USTRANSCOM, April 9, 2022. Fasano officially promoted to major general in February 2022, but the April assembly gave her the first opportunity to meet with the JTRU’s Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and Coast Guard Reservists in person. Maj. Gen. Fasano's primary role is to serve as the Mobilization Assistant to the USTRANSCOM commander, U.S. Air Force Gen. Jacqueline Van Ovost. The JTRU augments USTRANSCOM in providing air, land, and sea transportation for the Department of Defense, both in times of peace and war. USTRANSCOM is unique in that it is the only one of the Department of Defense’s 11 combatant commands with its own joint reserve unit to augment it and its mission.
