Picatinny Will Dedicate Building in Honor of Col. John M. McHugh

Picatinny Arsenal in Morris County will dedicate the installation’s new Armaments Integration Facility in honor of the late West Caldwell native U.S. Col. John M. McHugh. The dedication will take place during a closed ceremony on Tuesday, Sept. 6, according to a statement released by Picatinny Wednesday.

McHugh died in Afghanistan on May 18, 2010 in a suicide bomb attack in the Afghan capital of Kabul. He is one of the highest ranked soldiers from New Jersey to be killed in the line of duty in Afghanistan.

The new laboratory, also known as the AIF, will integrate small and medium caliber weapons with a variety of ground vehicles, both manned and unmanned, according to Picatinny. 

Brig. Gen. Jonathan A. Maddux, Commanding General, and Dr. Gerardo J. Melendez, Director, U.S. Army Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center will host the ceremony. McHugh’s family is expected to be in attendance.

The building dedication team considered many factors in the selection of McHugh, according to Steven Liss, Deputy Director, Weapon Systems and Technology Directorate at Picatinny.

“His activities during his career were highly complementary to the work that is being conducted in the facility that will bear his name,” said Liss. “He was from a New Jersey municipality close to Picatinny Arsenal and is one of the highest ranked soldiers to be killed in the line of duty from New Jersey.”

Liss explained that the building dedication team also spent time reading through public and news reports to learn more about McHugh.

“Comments from his community members on his loss seemed to set him apart,” Liss stated.

This is the latest honor to be bestowed upon McHugh. In his hometown of West Caldwell, a last June during a ceremony attended by more than a thousand people. The West Caldwell Recreation Department recently renamed an annual sports tradition the. In the fall, a fundraiser for local soccer teams will be renamed .

The new AIF building is one of more than 800 on the installation's nearly 6,500 acres in Morris County.