RICHMOND, Va. –
The Virginia Army National Guard held its inaugural First Formation, a concept designed to help integrate new Soldiers into the organization, Nov. 6, 2025, at Defense Supply Center Richmond, Virginia.
The event is designed for Soldiers returning from Advanced Individual Training or One Station Unit Training. At First Formation, the Soldiers are issued gear at the Central Issue Facility, review administrative records with Human Resources representatives and consult with the finance section to ensure pay and benefits are in order. In addition, representatives of the Integrated Primary Prevention Workforce, part of the J9 Directorate of Resiliency, are on hand to share resources available to the incoming Soldiers.
The concept of First Formation began as a way to improve the new Soldier integration process and make it more efficient, according to Command Sgt. Maj. Timothy M. Hawley, the VaARNG’s senior enlisted leader. Previous to the First Formation program, the administrative and supply tasks would be preformed individually multiple times a month.
“We started to see some challenges units and new Soldiers were having when a new Soldier returned from AIT,” said Hawley. “Our units are extremely busy, and we only have a few full-time Active Guard Reserve Soldiers per unit to try to in-process new Soldiers with all the other work that they are tying to get done between drill weekends. Integrating new Soldiers into units was not as smooth as it should be for a professional organization such as ours. We knew we could do better.”
Having a centralized and standardized onboarding process provides several key benefits for the new Soldier, Hawley said. First, the Soldier gets a proper welcome and introduction to the VaARNG, including overviews about benefits and job opportunities. Second, the First Formation ensures any administrative hang-ups or pay issues are resolved before they become an issue, as well as ensuring the Soldier gets the kit appropriate for the unit to which they are assigned.
In addition to the gear and administrative aspects, the monthly First Formation also includes a patching ceremony, where new Soldiers receive their new organizational patches from unit leaders.
“We will have their unit leadership remove the Soldier’s training patch and place their official unit patch on their left sleeve, officially making them a Virginia National Guardsmen,” said Hawley.
In addition to providing benefits to the individual Soldier in-processing into the organization, the entire VaARNG also benefits from the new program.
“This program is the first step into building a strong culture in the Virginia Army National Guard,” Hawley said. “We do that by taking care of our Soldiers as soon as they come back from training.”
Hawley said events like First Formation are vital to building a trained and ready force.
“These new Warriors are walking in the footsteps of people like George Washington, heroes who fought during the World War I Meuse-Argonne offensive and those who fought through northern France after landing on Omaha Beach in WWII,” said Hawley. “Becoming a Virginia National Guardsmen should be something special and we want to make it that for those who accept the call to serve.”