< Back to front page Text size – +

Ft. Hood commander ‘always does the next right thing,’ his brother says

E-mail|Link|Comments () November 6, 2009 04:07 PM

edited%20Bros2.JPG

Army Lieutenant General Robert Cone (left) and his brother, Brad Cone, in a family photo.

By John R. Ellement, Globe Staff

The brother of the New Hampshire native who is commander of Ft. Hood said today he is confident Lieutenant General Robert W. Cone will be able to restore the morale and sense of peace at the sprawling Texas base where 13 people were killed and 30 wounded by a gunman on Thursday.

"It's horrifying," Brad Cone said of the attack allegedly carried out by Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan. “But I also know [Cone] is the man for the job. He will restore order and get the morale to where it should be by working with the families of the victims, both deceased and injured.’’

Brad Cone added: “He always does the next right thing.’’

The Cones grew up in Manchester, N.H., where the elder Cone played football and then pursued his lifelong goal of becoming a solider when he entered West Point in 1975 as the Vietnam War was winding down and anyone choosing to make a career out of the military was viewed with some disdain, Brad Cone said.

“You really had to be devoted back in those days,’’ said Brad Cone, who added their father has remained in Manchester. “When we were kids, some people wanted to be a firefighter. Myself, I wanted to be a professional basketball player. My brother wanted to be a soldier. He always wanted to be a soldier. … He’s a very driven individual.’’

Cone said his brother took command of Ft. Hood only in September and is expected to command the base for the next two years. His first assignment after graduating West Point in 1979 was as an armor officer at Ft. Hood where he spent five years, according to the general’s biography. He returned for a two-year stint that began in 1999 and ended in 2001.

During his 30-year career, Cone has obtained a master of arts degree from the University of Texas at Austin, a master’s in national security and strategic studies from the Naval War College, and is an inductee in the National Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi and served as a Fellow in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Seminar XXI, according to his official biography. He has also played key roles in training soldiers to adapt to the complex war environments in both Iraq and Afghanistan and had a major role in the development of the Afghani national army and police.

Brad Cone, a salesman, said he was driving in the White Mountains on Thursday when his boss alerted him to the tragedy unfolding in Texas. “I was kind of fearing the worse, to be honest with you,’’ Brad Cone said, adding he listened to the radio as he continued driving home to Salem.

Once home, Cone turned on the television and was relieved to see his brother appear on the screen.

“I’m used to hearing his voice,’’ said Brad Cone, who added that the brothers speak by telephone at least once a week. “To know that my television is one of many around the world that was watching him, it was surreal to me.’’

Brad Cone said it wasn’t until late Thursday night that he got a text from his brother assuring him that both he and his sister-in-law, Jill, were both safe.

“I never thought something like this would happen on our soil,’’ Brad Cone said.