Special Forces leader retires after “Trip” in the military took him around the globe
By Maj. Benjamin Hughes
FREDERICK, Md. — Command Sgt. Maj. Ernest E. “Trip” Wright spent nearly four decades serving in the Maryland Army National Guard and the U.S. Army Special Operations community. He retired as the senior enlisted leader for the Special Operations Detachment – NATO during a ceremony on October 19, 2025, at Tenth Ward Distillery Whiskey Hall, closing a career that began in Baltimore and carried him across the world.
Wright enlisted in the Maryland Army National Guard in 1988, shortly after graduating high school. He volunteered for Airborne and Special Forces training, continuing directly from basic training and infantry training to Special Forces. He completed the Special Forces Qualification Course in 1989 and earned his Green Beret before returning to Maryland to join Operational Detachment – Alpha 217 of the 20th Special Forces Group (Airborne).
Through the 1990s, he trained and deployed with his detachment across Türkiye, Italy, Belize, the Dominican Republic, and Panama, and he was mobilized to Fort Bragg in support of Operation Desert Storm. At the same time, he served on the Maryland State Narcotics Task Force and pursued college studies as a civilian.
By Sept. 11, 2001, Wright had risen to sergeant first class, serving as the senior weapons sergeant for his detachment in B Company, 2nd Battalion, 20th Special Forces Group. He deployed to Afghanistan twice, first in 2003, conducting combat operations in the southern provinces, and again in 2005 as a coalition advisor embedded with a mechanized task force from the United Arab Emirates.
“The Maryland National Guard enabled me to pursue both a civilian career when it suited me and also a full-time military career,” he said. “I was able to have the best of both worlds.”
Wright later moved into an “active-duty” role with the Active Guard Reserve program and took command of the Special Forces Training Detachment 2-20, responsible for training new Special Forces soldiers.
He joined the Special Operations Detachment – NATO in 2015, serving first as operations sergeant. He deployed to Afghanistan in 2017, where he served as the SOAG Camp Commander at Camp Duskin and advised the Afghan Special Forces Training Command.
In 2021, he deployed to Jordan and Iraq with SOD-O, serving as Camp Sergeant Major at Camp Xiphos before moving into the operations sergeant major role. Wright called it his most difficult deployment as it was not with the Special Forces community. He became the detachment’s senior enlisted leader in September 2023.
“Whenever I work with people outside of the special operations community, it is palpable to me the difference,” he said. “It has been a blessing to have worked with these people in SOF all these years.”
Throughout his career, Wright earned multiple military honors, including a Legion of Merit, a Bronze Star Medal with Valor Device, two additional Bronze Stars, and several joint and service commendations. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Towson University and completed the U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy Non-Resident Course, where he was named to the Commandant’s List.
“Being in Special Forces, I was able to do so many different things and have so many varied experiences,” he said. “I have flown in blacked-out special operations helicopters, driven snowmobiles, ATVs, scout motorcycles, armored vehicles, and a Mercedes S-Class. I have spent weeks living in swamps, deserts, snow-covered mountains, and tropical beaches.”
Wright said his most memorable deployment was his first to Afghanistan in 2003 with his Special Forces detachment. The team adopted the motto “No Pride,” he said, meaning they approached the mission without pretending to know everything.
“We would be open and honest about our inexperience as a team working in that environment,” he said. “We wouldn’t have a chip on our shoulders; instead, we’d be grateful to be part of the fight and willing to do whatever it takes to support other units in our area.”
That approach, he said, helped the detachment build trust with a SEAL platoon operating in southern Afghanistan.
“Thanks to my A-Team’s humility and hard work, we transitioned from an inexperienced National Guard detachment to a tier-one asset in-country within weeks,” he said.
After a distinguished career in both Special Forces and broader special operations assignments, Wright describes the community as volunteers who defined themselves by pursuing demanding paths.
His son, Brady, is a sophomore in the South Carolina Corps of Cadets at The Citadel.
“I never pushed my son towards military service,” he said. “I thought he had made the best decision of his life and that I could not be more proud of him for choosing that path.”
Wright lives in Howard County. Now that he has retired, he plans to travel with his wife, Lisa.
“We have recently purchased an RV and are beginning to tour the U.S. one trip at a time,” he said. “Sip a little whiskey and smoke a cigar.”
