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JBSA News
NEWS | Sept. 23, 2021

Army Chief of Chaplains visits IMCOM HQ

By Brittany Nelson U.S. Army Installation Management Command Public Affairs

Chaplain (Maj. Gen) Thomas Solhjem, the Army’s Chief of Chaplains, visited the Installation Management Command headquarters at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston Sept. 8 to meet with IMCOM Chaplain (Col.) Michael Zell. Solhjem was in San Antonio for the Senior Enlisted Advisory Group.

The IMCOM chaplain and Solhjem spoke about overall religious support throughout the command.

Solhjem also met with Randy Robinson, IMCOM executive deputy to the commanding general, about the Spiritual Readiness Initiative in support of the “Life Worth Living” campaign, an Army Vice Chief of Staff initiative intended to prevent suicide in the ranks.

“The general visits garrisons to talk to them about spirituality and the impact that it has on those most in need,” Zell said. “It builds resilience for Soldiers, helps with readiness and is preventative for harmful behaviors.”

Zell mentioned that IMCOM is the tip of the spear for support of Soldiers and families because of their widespread chapel facilities and services. Across the IMCOM enterprise, there are 600 personnel, 343 facilities, 14,000 volunteers, and 28 family life centers.

“I love seeing how our collaboration and work with the Chief of Chaplains and IMCOM supports the broader vision of religious support across the Army and the integrative factors,” Zell said.

Religious services also help with the emotional aspect of holistic health by offering counseling services. There are more than 40 family life chaplains across IMCOM.

“These chaplains have masters in counseling from accredited institutions,” said Zell, who is a licensed professional counselor himself. “Many are certified marriage and family therapists. They work in parallel with mental health.”

There are 38 family life chaplains and about 135,000 counseling sessions held a year.

Moving forward, IMCOM religious services plans to continue their base support of facilities, pastoral care, and services.

“The future of IMCOM is going to be more closely aligned with units delivering iterative religious support in coordination with chapel communities and other helping agencies,” Zell said.

To learn more about the religious services available at your garrison, visit https://home.army.mil/imcom/index.php/customers/chaplains.