Honesdale native Philip D. Cordaro promoted to Army colonel in Hawaii

A Honesdale native, Philip D. Cordaro, has advanced in the Army to the rank of colonel while stationed in Hawaii.

Cordaro entered the Army right after graduation in 1996 from Honesdale High School. Cordaro, now 46, has served 23 years and has deployed to operations in Albania, Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan.

At the April 5 ceremony, his mother, Karen Burkavage of Honesdale, had what she described as her “honor and privilege" of placing the beret on his head.

His wife, Sarah, and his oldest son, Luca, pinned the eagles on both sides of his uniform dress shirt. They also have a daughter, Aida, and younger son, Antonio.

The ceremony was officiated by Maj. Gen. Jered Helwig on the deck of the USS Missouri.

As a surprise, “his sisters, Michelle Rickard, Anna Avery, Katy Burkavage, and his brother, Matthew and his wife Hunter all flew to Hawaii the day before his promotion," Burkavage said. "The look on his face was priceless!"

He also has sisters Jennifer Suhosky and Carley Cordaro. Also attending were his in-laws, Rick and Chris Treveloni from Arizona.

"John and I are so proud of Philip and all he has accomplished in his life so far," Burkavage said.

Col. Cordaro is the son of Karen Burkavage and Philip Cordaro and stepson of John Burkavage and Patsy Cordaro. His maternal grandparents are Catherine Cottell Bigart and the late Melvin Cottell. Paternal grandparents are Charmaine Cordaro and the late Philip Cordaro. The Cordaro name is well-known locally for the longtime restaurant in Honesdale started by the colonel's grandparents.

The following is a summary of his career, extracted from biographical information supplied by Karen Burkavage.

Enlisting as an airborne infantryman he joined Delta Company, 2/505 Parachute Infantry Regiment at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. In 1999, he deployed to Albania followed by Kosovo supporting Operation Nobil Anvil.

Discharged from active duty, he pursued a bachelor’s degree at King’s College in Wilkes-Barre. In 2003, he was commissioned as second lieutenant in the Ordnance Corps.

Becoming an explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) officer, he was assigned to the 184th Ordnance Battalion (EOD) at Fort Gillem, Georgia, and promoted to first lieutenant in November 2004. He deployed to Baghdad, Iraq, supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Cordaro was promoted to captain in July 2006. With the 184th, he served as battalion adjutant, headquarters detachment commander and battalion intelligence officer.

In April 2008, he assumed command of 38th Ordnance Company (EOD). In June, he and the former Sarah Treveloni were wed in Savannah, Georgia. That year, he completed his master's degree in public administration concentrating in national security affairs from Troy University. In November 2009, he deployed to Mosul, Iraq, for a year supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn.

After being promoted to major in February 2011, he relinquished company command and was selected for the Command and General Staff College Interagency Fellowship and moved to Washington, D.C. There he attended intermediate level education at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, and completed the fellowship with the U.S. Agency for International Development.

In September 2012, the couple moved with their first two children to Fort Carson, Colorado, where he became battalion executive officer for the 242nd Ordnance Battalion (EOD). In July 2013, the 242nd deployed to Afghanistan supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Subsequently, Cordaro was selected for one of two U.S. positions at the NATO Countering IEDs (C-IED) Center of Excellence in Hoyo de Manzanares, Spain. He served with the NATO C-IED Center of Excellence as the Neutralization Section Chief, Defeat the Device Branch Chief and Operations officer.

The Cordaros, now with three children, moved in August 2017 to Virginia where he joined the Defense Intelligence Agency’s Joint Foreign Materiel Program Office. His roles were chief of expeditionary operations, deputy director for strategic planning, and deputy director for enterprise operations. He advanced to lieutenant colonel in June 2018.

In 2021, they moved to Hawaii, where Cordaro received command of the 303rd Ordnance Battalion (EOD), responsible for Chemical and EOD companies across Hawaii and Alaska. The battalion was heavily involved in all U.S. Army Pacific (USARPAC) exercises and training events with foreign partners across the Indo-Pacific region as well as supporting UN Peacekeeping training and having responsibility for EOD support to law enforcement across both states and all U.S. territories.

Relinquishing command in July 2023, he moved to USARPAC’s Plans, Strategy, and War Games directorate as their Chief of War Games. Presently his duties involve designing and running war games to help the command update war plans and test new organizations and concepts.

“He wanted to serve his county,” his mother summed. “We are so proud of Phil.”

Peter Becker has worked at the Tri-County Independent or its predecessor publications since 1994. Reach him at pbecker@tricountyindependent.com or 570-253-3055 ext. 1588.

This article originally appeared on Tri-County Independent: Honesdale native Philip D. Cordaro promoted to Army colonel in Hawaii