FEATURED STORIES

Virginia Army National Guard Soldiers assigned to the state’s Recruiting and Retention Battalion conduct a battalion run June 27, 2025, at the State Military Reservation in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The battalion came together for a week of training at SMR to focus on professional development, sharing best practices and building esprit de corps. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. 1st Class Terra C. Gatti)
VaARNG recruiting battalion tops annual mission
Sept. 9, 2025
The Virginia Army National Guard’s Recruiting and Retention Battalion marked a milestone Aug. 20, 2025, when it surpassed its National Guard Bureau mission of 851 enlistments in what has been an exceptional recruiting year. With weeks still remaining before the Sept. 30 end of the recruiting year, the battalion’s recruiters have continued to build on that success, adding dozens more enlistments. 

The Virginia National Guard formally re-activates the 29th Infantry Division Artillery, or DIVARTY, during a ceremony Sept. 6, 2025, at the Virginia War Memorial in Richmond, Virginia. Maj. Gen. James W. Ring, the Adjutant General of Virginia, presided over the ceremony featuring the uncasing of colors for DIVARTY and DIVARTY’s Headquarters and Headquarters Battery. Brig. Gen. Christopher J. Samulski, the 29th ID commanding general, and Col. Shawn Talmadge, DIVARTY commander, gave remarks, and the Troutville-based 29th ID Band provided ceremonial music for the event. The DIVARTY, based in Bowling Green, Virginia, is a brigade-level headquarters, aligned with the Norfolk-based 1st Battalion, 111th Field Artillery Regiment, and two other artillery battalions in Florida and Georgia for training. The 29th DIVARTY was deactivated in 2005 due to Army-wide force structure changes, but evolving operational requirements have brought it back to the force. Read more DIVARTY at https://vngpao.info/DIVARTY.
Ceremony formalizes return of 29th ID DIVARTY
Sept. 17, 2025
The Virginia National Guard formally re-activated the 29th Infantry Division Artillery, or DIVARTY, during a ceremony Sept. 6, 2025, at the Virginia War Memorial in Richmond, Virginia.

VIRGINIA NATIONAL GUARD NEWS

The Virginia National Guard formally re-activates the 29th Infantry Division Artillery, or DIVARTY, during a ceremony Sept. 6, 2025, at the Virginia War Memorial in Richmond, Virginia. Maj. Gen. James W. Ring, the Adjutant General of Virginia, presided over the ceremony featuring the uncasing of colors for DIVARTY and DIVARTY’s Headquarters and Headquarters Battery. Brig. Gen. Christopher J. Samulski, the 29th ID commanding general, and Col. Shawn Talmadge, DIVARTY commander, gave remarks, and the Troutville-based 29th ID Band provided ceremonial music for the event. The DIVARTY, based in Bowling Green, Virginia, is a brigade-level headquarters, aligned with the Norfolk-based 1st Battalion, 111th Field Artillery Regiment, and two other artillery battalions in Florida and Georgia for training. The 29th DIVARTY was deactivated in 2005 due to Army-wide force structure changes, but evolving operational requirements have brought it back to the force. Read more DIVARTY at https://vngpao.info/DIVARTY.
Ceremony formalizes return of 29th ID DIVARTY
Sept. 17, 2025
The Virginia National Guard formally re-activated the 29th Infantry Division Artillery, or DIVARTY, during a ceremony Sept. 6, 2025, at the Virginia War Memorial in Richmond, Virginia.

Airmen and their civilian supervisors and employers pose for a group photo during the 192nd Wing, Virginia Air National Guard’s 2025 Bosslift event Sept. 6 at Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Hampton, Virginia. The event, organized by the VaANG Military and Family Readiness office and the Virginia Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, provided civilian employers with a firsthand experience of what their VaANG employees do during their military service. (U.S. Air National Guard Photo by Staff Sgt. Nilsa Garcia)
VaANG’s Bosslift event enhances military-civilian partnerships
Sept. 11, 2025
Strengthening ties between the military and civilian sectors, the 192nd Wing, Virginia Air National Guard, hosted the 2025 Bosslift event on Sept. 6 at Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Hampton, Virginia. Organized by the VaANG Military and Family Readiness office and the Virginia Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, or ESGR, this event provided civilian employers with an opportunity to experience firsthand the training and dedication of their Air National Guard employees. The 2025 Bosslift, part of the Virginia ESGR outreach, aimed to bridge the gap between civilian workplaces and National Guard responsibilities.

Chief Warrant Officer 2 J. Anthony Dell, the 192nd Wing, Virginia Air National Guard’s first warrant officer, graduates from Warrant Officer Training School May 21, 2025, at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama. Dell's family and leadership in the VaANG attended his graduation ceremony. (Courtesy photo)
Virginia Air National Guard welcomes its first Warrant Officer
Sept. 11, 2025
The 192nd Wing, Virginia Air National Guard’s Chief Warrant Officer 2 J. Anthony Dell graduated from Warrant Officer Training School May 21, 2025, at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama. He returned to the VaANG and is serving as the wing’s first warrant officer since the U.S. Air Force discontinued the rank in 1959.

Official portrait of Brig. Gen. Christopher G. Batterton.
Batterton succeeds Jumper to lead Virginia Air National Guard
Sept. 10, 2025
Brig. Gen. Christopher Batterton succeeded Brig. Gen. Catherine Jumper as commander of the Virginia Air National Guard effective Sept. 6, 2025, and Jumper assumed responsibilities as the Assistant Adjutant General for Air Strategic Initiatives.

Virginia Army National Guard Soldiers assigned to the state’s Recruiting and Retention Battalion conduct a battalion run June 27, 2025, at the State Military Reservation in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The battalion came together for a week of training at SMR to focus on professional development, sharing best practices and building esprit de corps. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. 1st Class Terra C. Gatti)
VaARNG recruiting battalion tops annual mission
Sept. 9, 2025
The Virginia Army National Guard’s Recruiting and Retention Battalion marked a milestone Aug. 20, 2025, when it surpassed its National Guard Bureau mission of 851 enlistments in what has been an exceptional recruiting year. With weeks still remaining before the Sept. 30 end of the recruiting year, the battalion’s recruiters have continued to build on that success, adding dozens more enlistments. 

Chief Warrant Officer 4 Douglas L. Harris assumes responsibility as the Virginia Army National Guard’s Command Chief Warrant Officer from Chief Warrant Officer 5 John D. Calley Sept. 6, 2025, at the Virginia National Guard Sergeant Bob Slaughter Headquarters at Defense Supply Center Richmond, Virginia. Brig. Gen. Charles B. Martin, the VNG Land Component Commander, presided over the change of responsibility ceremony and the officer saber exchange, symbolizing the transfer of responsibility from Calley to Harris. Command Sgt. Maj. Timothy Hawley, the VaARNG State Command Sergeant Major, served as the keeper of the saber. Calley retires with more than 40 years of military service. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. 1st Class Jeff Clements)
Harris succeeds Calley as VaARNG senior warrant officer
Sept. 8, 2025
Chief Warrant Officer 4 Douglas L. Harris assumed responsibility as the Virginia Army National Guard’s Command Chief Warrant Officer from Chief Warrant Officer 5 John D. Calley Sept. 6, 2025, at the Virginia National Guard Sergeant Bob Slaughter Headquarters at Defense Supply Center Richmond, Virginia.

Virginia National Guard Soldiers assigned to the Sandston-based 2nd Battalion, 224th Aviation Regiment, 29th Infantry Division and members of the Fort Pickett Fire and Emergency Services conduct water bucket training using a self-supporting portable water tank Aug. 21, 2025, at Fort Pickett, Virginia. The training is the first time the aviators have trained filling water buckets from the 14,000-gallon tank, which can be deployed in areas without a nearby pond or lake. Aviation assets can support firefighting efforts with the use of water buckets, which require periodic training for flight crews in order to ensure equipment proficiency. Read more about the 2-224th at https://vngpao.info/mrxrkv3m.
VNG aviators conduct water bucket training using portable tank
Sept. 5, 2025
Virginia National Guard Soldiers assigned to the Sandston-based 2nd Battalion, 224th Aviation Regiment, 29th Infantry Division and members of the Fort Pickett Fire and Emergency Services conduct water bucket training Aug. 21, 2025, at Fort Pickett, Virginia. 

More than 30 Soldiers and civilians from a variety of National Guard organizations participate in a Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Credentialed Education Unit Refresher course Aug. 21, 2025, at the State Military Reservation in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Participants included victim advocates from the Virginia National Guard, Delaware National Guard, Pennsylvania National Guard and National Guard Bureau, as well as members of the Virginia National Guard Integrated Primary Prevention Workforce. The four-day course included training in ethics, advocacy, crisis intervention, employing resiliency, and a forensic unit tour at the Portsmouth Naval Hospital. (U.S. National Guard photo by A.J. Coyne)
Sexual Assault Prevention and Response course provides refresher training to Soldiers, civilians
Sept. 3, 2025
More than 30 Soldiers and civilians from a variety of National Guard organizations participated in a Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Credentialed Education Unit Refresher course Aug. 18-22, 2025, at the State Military Reservation in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

More than 70 Virginia Army National Guard Soldiers assigned to the Charlottesville-based Alpha Company, 3rd Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team support a Florida National Guard IBCT during their National Training Center rotation July 16 - Aug. 8, 2025, at Fort Irwin, California. During the rotation, Alpha Company, known as “Outlaw,” filled a line company vacancy within the Florida National Guard’s 2nd Battalion, 124th Infantry Regiment, 53rd IBCT. A contingent of Finnish Soldiers also participated in the rotation in support of the Department of Defense's State Partnership Program.
3-116th Soldiers excel “in the box” at National Training Center
Aug. 28, 2025
More than 70 Virginia Army National Guard Soldiers assigned to the Charlottesville-based Alpha Company, 3rd Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team supported a Florida National Guard IBCT during their National Training Center rotation July 16 - Aug. 8, 2025, at Fort Irwin, California. 

U.S. Air National Guard Staff Sgt. Eleanor Warren, assigned to the U.S. Air Forces in Europe–Air Forces Africa 603rd Air Operations Center strategy division, conversing with a teammate at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, Aug. 25, 2025. Warren was selected as one of the 2025 recipients for the Air Force’s 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year awards, demonstrating superior leadership, exemplary job performance, and enduring conviction to community involvement within a 12-month period. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Sabrina Fuller-Judd)
Virginia Air National Guard’s Eleanor Warren named among USAF’s top 12 Airmen of 2025
Aug. 25, 2025
The U.S. Air Force announced the service’s 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year for 2025, including members from across active duty, the Air National Guard and the Air Force Reserve. Among those named is the Virginia Air National Guard’s Senior Airman Eleanor R. Warren, a geospatial intelligence analyst assigned to the 192nd Wing’s Intelligence Squadron.

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ABOUT THE VA NATIONAL GUARD

The Virginia National Guard is a unique dual-status force with a federal mission to provide a combat reserve for the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force to fight our nation’s wars and a state mission to provide a response force that answers the call of the Governor to defend the commonwealth. The VNG traces the history and tradition of Citizen-Soldier service to the founding of Jamestown in 1607, and there has been a military presence defending Virginia ever since. For more information on the Virginia National Guard click HERE.

SEXUAL ASSAULT PREVENTION & RESPONSE

  • Virginia National Guard Reporting sexual assault line - 434-294-4669
  • DoD Safe Helpline - 877-995-5247/ 202-470-5546 (Oconus)

RESILIENCY RESOURCES

The Virginia National Guard J9 Directorate of Resiliency brings together Soldier-care efforts under one umbrella and includes: 

  • the Integrated Primary Prevention Workforce
  • Family Programs
  • Resilience, Risk Reduction and Suicide Prevention
  • Religious Support
  • the State Equal Employment Manager
  • the Sexual Assault Response Workforce

QUICK LINKS

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