The Commission

U.S. Army Gen. (Ret.) Michael X. Garrett was appointed to the American Battle Monuments Commission in June 2023.

Garrett, born in Cleveland, Ohio and raised on military installations across the world, has spent his entire life in and around the U.S. Army. He is the proud son of Lola Garrett, a U.S. Army spouse and life-long public servant, and Command Sergeant Major Edward Garrett, a Vietnam War combat veteran and Silver Star recipient. An alumnus of both the Department of Defense High School in Baumholder, Germany, and Xavier University in Cincinnati, Garrett began his own Army journey in 1984.

He served his formative years in the elite 75th Ranger Regiment, and over a decade was assigned to and wore the scrolls of the Regiment’s headquarters and each of its three Ranger battalions. Garrett went on to command his own formations in the 82nd Airborne and 25th Infantry Divisions, served multiple combat tours in the Middle East, and ultimately led 750,000 combat and support personnel within the Army’s largest organization, Forces Command.

After 38 years of active service, he retired as an Army four-star general and continues to build connections with U.S. service members and their families, patriotic communities across America, and soldier-friendly universities and businesses. Upon retirement, he was inducted by his own son as a Distinguished Member of the 75th Ranger Regiment. He is the recipient of the Ellis Island Honors Society Medal of Honor along with honorary degrees from Methodist and Xavier University.

John Freeman was appointed to the American Battle Monuments Commission in July 2025.

A graduate of both Fordham University and Brooklyn Law School, Freeman is currently a managing partner of High Plains Acres, an agriculture concern in North Dakota. He is also the manager and general counsel for Palmetto Management, LLC, a Charleston, South Carolina-based family office.

Freeman previously served as general counsel for Bessent Capital in New York. He also worked as an analyst for Banque Julius Baer in Paris and in the administration of SFM in London. Freeman began his legal career serving as an Assistant District Attorney in Bronx County, New York and operated his own firm in New York for several years.

Freeman is fluent in French, and has been actively engaged in historical preservation in Charleston, South Carolina.

Deecy Gray was re-appointed to the American Battle Monuments Commission in September 2025, she also served on the Commission from 2018 to 2021.

Gray is a public relations and government affairs consultant with extensive experience in business, policy, diplomacy, and public service. Most recently she served as the Ambassador Designate to the 74th General Assembly of the United Nations. She has served on congressional and presidential boards, including a special task force to study the role of women in the military and the USO Board of Governors. She was also a member of the George Mason University Board of Visitors and the GMU Foundation Board.

She is currently an advocate for civics education. In this capacity she has helped produce a recent documentary on civics for public television, “We Hold These Truths”, which shows the influence of our Declaration throughout the world, and is working to incorporate civics education into middle and high schools with lesson plans for teachers.

Gray received a Bachelor of Arts from Marymount College in Tarrytown, New York and a Master of Arts from St. Louis University.

Florent “Flo” Groberg was appointed to the American Battle Monuments Commission in September 2021.

Groberg served in the U.S. Army from 2008 to 2015, rising to the rank of captain and completing both Airborne and Ranger training. He received the Medal of Honor for heroic actions during combat operations in Afghanistan in 2012. Following his military service, Groberg held senior roles at Microsoft, Boeing, LinkedIn, and the U.S. Department of Defense. At LinkedIn, he led the company’s veterans program, helping millions of transitioning service members. He also served as a spokesperson for corporate and social impact initiatives.

He is a Managing Director at AE Industrial Partners, where he drives strategic growth across the portfolio by leveraging deep industry relationships, particularly in national security, aerospace, and defense. His work focuses on unlocking government and commercial opportunities, strengthening operational performance, and building cultures rooted in accountability, resilience, and mission-first execution.

Groberg holds a master’s degree in management with a specialization in intelligence policies from the University of Maryland University College.

Christopher LaCivita was appointed to the American Battle Monuments Commission in April 2025.

LaCivita is an enlisted U.S. Marine Corps veteran, who was awarded the Purple Heart for wounds received while serving in the Persian Gulf War in 1991. Following his enlistment, he served as a Congressional Aide on Capitol Hill.

He is a political consultant and campaign strategist, having served as senior advisor and co-manager for President Donald J. Trump’s 2024 campaign, as well as Chief of Staff of the Republican National Committee. He has twice served as the National Political director for the National Republican Senatorial Committee and held the role of Executive Director of the Republican party of Virginia.

LaCivita is a graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University, having earned a degree in political science.

Kelly J. Roberts was appointed to the American Battle Monuments Commission in April 2025.

Roberts is the Owner and Chairman of the Entrepreneurial Corporate Group (ECG) and The Historic Mission Inn Hotel & Spa, an award-winning AAA Four Diamond property. Through ECG, the Roberts family has built one of the largest privately held apartment portfolios in the United States. Roberts is also President of KRR Enterprises and Founder of PALLAS Skincare, launched as an extension of the nationally recognized Kelly’s Spa.

Roberts has received national honors for historic preservation, including the Steward of History and Historic Preservation Award and Hoteliers of the Year. She curates a museum-caliber art collection featuring classical and contemporary masters, many displayed at the Mission Inn. Her leadership has been featured in Modern Luxury and Inland Empire Magazine, and she was named Women Connect Leader of the Year.

A dedicated philanthropist, Roberts is a distinguished board member and Life Associate of Pepperdine University, where she and her husband Duane endowed the first Dean’s Chair at the School of Law. She also serves on the City of Hope Orange County President’s Cabinet and was a trustee emerita of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

She holds a degree in political science from the University of Southern California and a law degree.

The Honorable Brooks D. Tucker was appointed to the American Battle Monuments Commission in April 2025.

A graduate of the University of Maryland, Tucker was commissioned as a U.S. Marine Corps officer in 1987. He served as an infantry officer in the Second Marine Division with deployments to the Western Pacific and Southwest Asia during the Gulf War. After transitioning from active duty in 1992, he pursued a 13-year career in financial services while continuing his military service in the Marine Corps Reserves, where he rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel and deployed to Mali, Georgia, Iraq, and Afghanistan.

From 2010 to 2015, Tucker served as a senior Senate staffer on national security policy. He joined the Department of Veterans Affairs in 2017 as Assistant Secretary for Congressional and Legislative Affairs and was later appointed Chief of Staff, serving until 2021. He currently serves on the board of Our Community Salutes, a nonprofit honoring high school enlistees.

David Bossie – Commissioner

David A. Warrington – Commissioner

Michael D. Miller was appointed to the American Battle Monuments Commission in August 2026.

Miller graduated from Stanford Law School and went on to practice corporate and real estate law for 15 years, first at the Los Angeles-based firm of Munger, Tolles, Rickerhauser, and Hills before co-founding Stern & Miller in Santa Monica, California.

He is a founding member and principal of Yonezawa Miller Company, LLC, which owns and operates commercial office properties in multiple states. He is also the president and chief executive officer of Cordary, Inc., a family-owned real estate investment company specializing in the development, repositioning and management of commercial and multifamily residential properties.

Through the Miller Family Foundation, he and his wife, Miriam, have made significant philanthropic investments in medical research and improvements to the patient experience in hospital settings. They have also supported the Getty Villa and Stanford Law School, among other institutions.

Robert Dalessandro currently serves as Acting Secretary of the American Battle Monuments Commission.

A retired U.S. Army colonel, Dalessandro is an American historian and author who has written and presented extensively on the American Expeditionary Forces contributions during the First World War. He serves concurrently as Deputy Secretary of the American Battle Monuments Commission.

He frequently leads battlefield tours to sites in the United States, France, and Italy. He graduated from the Virginia Military Institute with a degree in History in 1980. His graduate studies included work at the College of William and Mary, the U.S. Army War College and George Washington University. He holds master’s degrees in history, strategic studies, and museum science. He also formerly served as the chairman of the United States World War One Centennial Commission.