Rafael O ' Ferrall Brigadier General Rafael O ' Ferrall ( born June 29 , 1954 ) is an Army National Guard officer who is the Deputy Commanding General for the Joint Task Force at Guantanamo Bay , Cuba and the Assistant Adjutant General ( Army ) and Deputy Commanding General of the Joint Force Headquarters at San Juan , Puerto Rico . Early years . O ' Ferrall ( birth name : Rafael O ' Ferrall Cordova ) was born to Victor Manuel O ' Ferrall Sr . , from Santurce and Blanca Rose Cordova , a nurse from the town of Yabucoa . His parents moved to the United States from Puerto Rico in search for a better way of life and lived in New York City where O ' Ferrall was born . When he was five years old , he was sent to live with his grandmother in Puerto Rico , where he received his primary and secondary education . In the 1960s O ' Ferrall ' s mother returned to Puerto Rico upon the death of his grandmother . He was enrolled at Dr . Jose M . Lazaro High School in Carolina , Puerto Rico , where he excelled in sports . In 1972 , he was asked by the Puerto Rico Olympic Committee to represent Puerto Rico in the Munich Olympics in track and field events , however he was later substituted by the more experienced Luis Alers . After he graduated from high school in 1973 , he enrolled in the University of Puerto Rico and participated in various competitions as member of the track and field team of his Alma Mater . In 1974 , he represented the island in the XII Central American and Caribbean Games which were celebrated in Santo Domingo , Dominican Republic . During his student years he became a member of the university ' s Reserve Officer Training Corps program , which is also known as ROTC . He earned his Bachelor of Science degree with a concentration on Natural Science on June 20 , 1978 and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the Army National Guard that same year . Military career . O ' Ferrall was assigned to Charlie Battery , 1st Battalion , 162nd Field Artillery at Hato Rey , Puerto Rico . From June 1978 to June 1984 , he served in various administrative positions , among them : Assistant Executive Officer , Forward Observer and Fire Direction Officer . On June 19 , 1984 , O ' Ferrall was promoted to First Lieutenant and assigned to the 101st Troop Command in San Juan , Puerto Rico , where he served as Communication Electronic Officer , until February 1985 . On February he was assigned to Camp Santiago Training Site at Salinas , Puerto Rico as Communication Electronic Officer , during which he was promoted to the rank of Captain ( 1985 ) . In 1986 , O ' Ferrall earned his Master ' s in Business Administration and Management from Turabo University in Gurabo , Puerto Rico and served as Range Control Officer at Camp Santiago until October 1988 . That same year he served as trainer and facilitator at the Inter - American University of Puerto Rico ' s Biotechnology workshop . From October 1988 to May 1992 , he continued to serve at Camp Santiago , as Detachment Commander and as Director of Administration Branch and was promoted to Major . On May 1992 , O ' Ferrall was named Assistant G - 4 of the State Area Command Headquarters at San Juan , Puerto Rico and from March 1994 to April 1997 , he served as Operations Officer S - 3 , Headquarter , Headquarters Battery , 1st Battalion , 162nd Field Artillery , Hato Rey , Puerto Rico . In 1996 , he became a member of the Board of Directors of the Puerto Rico Manufacturers Association and served as such until 1999 . On April 1997 , O ' Ferrall was named Combat Commander at Headquarters of the 201st Regimental School at Fort Allen in Juana Díaz , Puerto Rico . On August 28 , he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and on March 1998 , he was once more reassigned to the 162nd Field Artillery , this time as Commander . Outside of his military roles , he was a member of the Labor Department Employer Committee in Carolina , Puerto Rico ( 1998 ) and member of the Course Design Committee at the University of Puerto Rico ' s Business Management School ( 1999 ) . On May 2000 , he became Operations Officer S - 3 , of the 101st Troop Command and on June 2001 , the Temporary Additional Duty at Headquarters , State Area Command . From July 2001 to July 2002 , O ' Ferrall continued his military academic education and became the first Puerto Rican to attend the United States Army War College / Senior Service College at Harvard University ; upon completion , he was reassigned to Headquarters , State Area Command as Logistics Staff Officer and on September 2002 as Director , Secretary General Staff . On October 2002 , he was promoted to the rank of Colonel and on February 2003 , he was sent to Fort Bragg , North Carolina where he first served as Deputy Brigade Commander and later as Brigade Commander of Task Force Guardian Mariner , XVIII Airborne Corp , which conducted operations in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom / Operation Noble Eagle . O ' Ferrall managed and directed mobile security teams to complete over 242 security missions aboard 173 Military Sealift Command ships , ensuring the safe and timely delivery of over of war fighting equipment and supplies essentials to United States Central Command . In 2004 , O ' Ferrall attended the Executive Seminar Anti - Terrorism / Force Protection , Level IV , at Washington D . C . and the United States Navy , Commanding Officer Anti - Terrorist / Force Protection Course , Level III at Norfolk , Virginia . Upon the completion of the courses he was assigned to the 92nd Infantry Brigade Separate in Puerto Rico as Deputy Brigade Commander and on September 2004 as Director Military / Civilian at the Joint Force Headquarters . In 2005 , O ' Ferrall served in the Board of Directors of the Chamber of the Food Industries Marketing and Distribution Association in Puerto Rico . During his stint at the Joint Force Headquarters from April 2006 to December 2008 , O ' Ferrall served in various positions , among them as Director for Operations J - 3 , Director for Intelligence J - 2 and Assistant Adjutant General - Army / Deputy Commanding General ( Army ) . In this assignment he was responsible for the training , readiness , personnel , and other areas of the Puerto Rico Army National Guard . He also served in the Board of Directors of the Puerto Rico Economic Development Alliance ( 2007 ) and in the Board of Directors of the Puerto Rico Manufacturers Association from 2006 to the present . After attending the Joint Task Force Commander Training Course , United States Northern Command at Colorado Springs , Colorado in 2008 , he was promoted to the rank of Brigadier General . Guantanamo Bay . On December 2008 , O ' Ferrall was deployed and named Deputy Commanding General , Joint Task Force Guantanamo at Guantanamo Bay , Cuba , position in which he currently serves while simultaneously serving as Assistant Adjutant General ( Army ) and Deputy Commanding General of the Joint Force Headquarters , of San Juan , Puerto Rico . O ' Ferrall became the first Hispanic and general officer from the Puerto Rico Army National Guard supporting a joint forces mission of this caliber . He is responsible for the supervision of over 2150 members from the United States Army , Marines , Navy , Air Force and Coast Guard as well as over 5000 civilian contractors and workers on the base . Among O ' Ferrall ' s responsibilities is to ensure that those under his supervision provide safe , humane , legal and transparent care custody of detained enemy combatants , conduct intelligence collection , analysis and dissemination for protection of detainees and personnel working in Joint Task Force - Guantanamo in support of the Global War on Terrorism , support the Office of Military Commissions to law enforcement and war crime investigations in planning for and on order to respond to Caribbean mass migrations operations . Civilian . As a civilian O ' Ferrall serves on the board of various companies . As of September 2004 , is the General Manager of Dade Paper Company ' s Puerto Rico and Caribbean Division , a supplier of food service disposables , janitorial supplies and equipment located in Cataño , Puerto Rico . Prior to this O ' Ferrall had worked in the Pharmaceuticals Division of Johnson & Johnson and as the Business Unit Manager for Industrial Products for Baxter Sales Corporation . He also served as VicePresident / General Manager for Pac - Tech . He is married to Maria Del Carmen Vazquez and has four children : Carmen Michelle O ' Ferrall ( from a previous marriage ) ; Rafael Jr . , Gian and Stephanie O ' Ferrall . Written works . Among the written works in which O ' Ferrall has participated either as author or co - author are the following : Military awards and decorations . Among O ' Ferrall ' s military awards and decorations are the following :