Creating an Environment

Public Affairs
Published Aug. 19, 2013
On July 11th, Lt. Col. John T. Litz (right) assumed command of the Charleston District from Lt. Col. Edward P. Chamberlayne in a ceremony held at The Citadel. Here, Brig. Gen. Donald Jackson hands over the Corps flag, symbolizing the transition.

On July 11th, Lt. Col. John T. Litz (right) assumed command of the Charleston District from Lt. Col. Edward P. Chamberlayne in a ceremony held at The Citadel. Here, Brig. Gen. Donald Jackson hands over the Corps flag, symbolizing the transition.

On July 11th, Lt. Col. John T. Litz assumed command of the Charleston District from Lt. Col. Edward P. Chamberlayne in a ceremony held at The Citadel.

On July 11th, Lt. Col. John T. Litz assumed command of the Charleston District from Lt. Col. Edward P. Chamberlayne in a ceremony held at The Citadel.

On July 11th, Lt. Col. John T. Litz assumed command of the Charleston District from Lt. Col. Edward P. Chamberlayne in a ceremony held at The Citadel.

On July 11th, Lt. Col. John T. Litz assumed command of the Charleston District from Lt. Col. Edward P. Chamberlayne in a ceremony held at The Citadel.

On July 11th, Lt. Col. John T. Litz assumed command of the Charleston District from Lt. Col. Edward P. Chamberlayne in a ceremony held at The Citadel.

On July 11th, Lt. Col. John T. Litz assumed command of the Charleston District from Lt. Col. Edward P. Chamberlayne in a ceremony held at The Citadel.

On July 11th, Lt. Col. John T. Litz assumed command of the Charleston District from Lt. Col. Edward P. Chamberlayne, becoming the District’s 85th Commander and District Engineer.

As a result of his military career, Litz has a broad and diverse background, which has led him to realize that the success of an organization is in the hands of the people within it. He is looking forward to working with the people of the Charleston District, who he believes truly love their jobs and the community, and wants to help them however he can.

“I believe that a leader’s job is to create an environment for employees to thrive. You have to lead from the heart and trust the people around you.”

Litz enters a diverse world of harbor dredging, environmental permitting, military construction and much more. While he is admittedly still learning, through in-briefs and meeting employees, Litz is very impressed with how enthusiastic everyone is to work for the Charleston District.

“The leaders here are extremely proud of their employees and give them the credit,” said Litz. “The employees make me feel like I’m in a good place, so I’m thrilled to be here.”

Litz joins the Charleston District from an assignment at Fort Benning, Ga., where he served as deputy commander for an infantry training brigade. He is not new to the Corps, having worked at the Louisville District and the Afghanistan Engineer District with the Corps of Engineers.

“I’ve had the opportunity to work a lot with both civilians and military and they really aren’t much different,” said Litz. “Everyone is out there to execute their mission.”

Litz is looking forward to jumping into the District’s projects and helping in whatever way he can to push them forward to make more progress. He’s excited to oversee the regulatory permit actions going on throughout the state and seeing the renourishment of Folly Beach. As an Army officer, he also can’t wait to participate in ribbon cuttings at Fort Jackson because of the benefits those buildings provide for Soldiers during their training.

“I’m excited for my time here,” said Litz. “We are executing our mission for the nation and the state in so many ways and I’m proud to be a part of that.”

By the end of his two-year command at the Charleston District, Litz hopes to have positioned the District for future success in handling new work, establishing partnerships and maintaining technical proficiency.