(Jamaica Gleaner) Commodore Antonette Wemyss Gorman is to become Jamaica’s first woman Chief of Defence Staff next January.
She will succeed Lieutenant General Rocky Meade who will be retiring after 38 years in the army.
General Meade was appointed Chief of Defence Staff on December 1, 2016.
A release from the Office of the Prime Minister said Wemyss Gorman, 48, will be promoted to the rank of Rear Admiral for her appointment as army chief.
She was among three senior JDF officers who were interviewed by the Defence Board.
Wemyss-Gorman is a career officer who has been a member of the army for 29 years.
She is married and is the mother of a fifteen-year-old son.
At present, she is responsible for the daily running of the army.
Five things about Wemyss-Gorman:
1. She has performed at the strategic level of command within her technical area of expertise and in other domains both internal and external to the JDF.
2. Holds a Master’s Degree with distinction in National Security and Strategic Studies from the University of the West Indies.
3. Promoted to the rank of Commodore in December 2019.
4. She currently provides strategic guidance to the JDF in support of the transformational vision of the Chief of Defence Staff.
5. She is responsible for the establishment of the Caribbean Military Maritime Training Centre and the Maritime Air and Cyber Command, which includes the JDF Coast Guard, the JDF Air wing and Special Forces.
