The Virginia National Guard’s Fort Pickett will officially be redesignated Fort Barfoot in honor of Col. Van T. Barfoot, a World War II Medal of Honor recipient with extensive Virginia ties. The ceremony is scheduled for March 24, 2023, in the Fort Pickett area near Blackstone, Virginia.

Helping grow the Virginia Army National Guard recently became an even more lucrative endeavor with the expansion of the ARNG’s Stripes for Buddies program and the announcement of a new Army Recruiting Ribbon. When paired with the VNG’s Referral Enlistment Program, or REP, getting a buddy to enlist could equate to a $1,000 bonus, a promotion up to the rank of specialist or promotion points for sergeants and staff sergeants, and the award of the Army Recruiting Ribbon.

What first drew Maj. Kim Wynn to military service was the Army uniform of the 1980s and 90s. Catchy “Be All You Can Be” ads were filling the commercial breaks of her TV time, and she thought the Battle Dress Uniform, or BDU, looked pretty good. There was just something about it that she was attracted to and when she started attending Petersburg High School, she participated in Junior ROTC, and then, when she got to Virginia Tech, she decided to join the Virginia Army National Guard.

Virginia National Guard Soldiers assigned to the Virginia Beach-based 329th Regional Support Group and Maneuver Training Center Fort Pickett took top honors at the Virginia Army National Guard’s 2023 Best Warrior Competition, held March 16 - 19, 2023, at Fort Pickett, Virginia. 

Virginia National Guard Soldiers conducted a medical infantry tactics exchange with the Republic of Tajikistan March 5-10, 2023, in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. The exchange, which took place at a military installation in Dushanbe, was conducted in support of the Department of Defense's State Partnership Program, in which Virginia and Tajikistan have been partners since 2003.

Ten National Guard Soldiers from seven states participated in Military Funeral Honors Level 2 training Feb. 26- March 11, 2023, at the State Military Reservation in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Soldiers from Alabama, California, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, South Carolina and Virginia participated in the two-week course, hosted by the Virginia Army National Guard Funeral Honors Program.

Chief Master Sergeant Kelly B. Reich will succeed Chief Master Sgt. James J. Profita as the Virginia National Guard’s command senior enlisted leader, according to an announcement March 14, 2023, by the Maj. Gen. Timothy P. Williams, the Adjutant General of Virginia. Reich was serving as the acting CSEL following Profita’s retirement in September 2022 and was selected as the permanent replacement with an effective date of March 14.

The Virginia Commonwealth ChalleNGe Youth Academy graduated 72 cadets from Class 58 March 4, 2023, at the Virginia Beach Convention Center in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Maj. Gen. Timothy P. Williams, the Adjutant General of Virginia, retired Brig. Gen. Walt Mercer, the Department of Military Affairs Chief Operations Officer, and retired Navy Capt. Mark Chicoine, the Commonwealth ChalleNGe director, joined Travis May, the guest speaker for the ceremony, in congratulating the cadets on their accomplishments.  

Col. Jared D. Lake and Command Sgt. Maj. Duane D. Wolfe took charge as the new command team for the Staunton-based 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team from Col. Christopher J. Samulski and Command Sgt. Maj. Irving N. Reed Jr. March 5, 2023, in Staunton, Virginia. Maj. Gen. John M. Rhodes, 29th Infantry Division commanding general, presided over the ceremony where Lake took command of the 116th from Samulski and Wolfe assumed responsibility from Reed as the brigade’s senior enlisted leader.

Three Virginia National Guard Soldiers conducted an advanced infantry tactics exchange with soldiers and representatives from the Republic of Tajikistan Feb. 26 - March 2, 2023, in Dushanbe, Tajikistan.

After months of grueling effort, Staff Sgt. Matthew Dawson, a sniper team leader in the Virginia Army National Guard, completed Ranger School, earned the coveted Ranger Tab and was named the enlisted honor graduate for his Ranger School course. Dawson started Ranger School with 328 other Soldiers, graduated as one of 71 to avoid a recycle and was one of only three National Guard Soldiers to graduate with his class of 125 total graduates. Dawson’s father, who earned his own tab in 1990, was there to congratulate his son and pin his tab Jan. 27, 2023, at Fort Benning, Georgia.

Maj. Gen. John M. Rhodes, 29th Infantry Division commanding general, presented the Governor’s National Service Medal to Virginia National Guard Soldiers assigned to the Staunton-based 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team Headquarters March 5, 2023, in Staunton, Virginia, to recognize their federal active duty in Kosovo. Delegates David Reid and Ellen Campbell were also on hand to thank Soldiers for their service.