U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground commander keynotes local Independence Day celebration, Soldiers recognized

U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground (YPG) was well-represented at the Caballeros de Yuma’s 40th annual Fourth of July Flag Raising Ceremony at Armed Forces Park on July 4, 2026.

YPG commander Col. Charles Seaberry served as keynote speaker on the nation’s 250th birthday. YPG Chaplain (Maj.) Byron Denman provided the event’s invocation.

During the ceremony the Yuma Military Affairs Council recognized YPG’s Noncommissioned Officer of the Year, Sgt. Joseph Baggott of the elite Airborne Test Force, and Soldier of the Year, Pvt. 1st Class Nicholas Venus of the YPG Health Clinic, who has recently been promoted to Specialist.

In his remarks, Seaberry discussed at length the sacrifices of America’s men and women in uniform in defending the United States’ liberty and way of life.

“I believe that the Declaration of Independence gave America its promise and that every generation since has done its part in holding that promise high,” Seaberry said. “Some stood at Lexington and Concord, some fought at Gettysburg, some stormed the beaches of Normandy, some endured the frozen mountains of Korea, and some fought in the jungles of Vietnam. Some fought in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan: nearly one million Americans have given their lives defending this great nation on a promise first written in the Declaration of Independence.”

Seaberry also noted Yuma’s extraordinary appreciation for the military and YPG’s position at the forefront of Army transformation efforts in recent years.

“Before America asks a Soldier to drive a vehicle, rely on a weapon, rely on new technology, or to fight and win with the capability that he or she is given, it is tested at YPG," Seaberry said. "We stress it and test that capability to its limits because somewhere there is an American servicemember who will eventually depend on it.”