Approximately 110 Virginia National Guard Soldiers and Airmen depart for Texas July 8, 2023, where they will serve as Task Force Cardinal and assist the Texas Military Department and Operation Lone Star border security operation. Brig. Gen. Todd Hubbard, the VNG Director of the Joint Staff, and Col. David Lands, the Director of Staff for the Virginia Air National Guard, shook hands with the departing Soldiers and Airmen and thanked them for their service. Maj. Sidney Leslie and 1st. Sgt. Martin Dingus, the TF Cardinal command team, and other VNG leaders also received and thanked the Soldiers as they boarded the plane. The task force assembled at Fort Barfoot July 5 for training and administrative tasks prior to their departure, and members of the Virginia Defense Force and state civilian employees from the Virginia Department of Military Affairs assisted with their preparations. Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin, retired Maj. Gen. Craig Crenshaw, the Virginia Secretary of Veterans and Defense Affairs, and Maj. Gen. James W. Ring, the Adjutant General of Virginia, visited troops July 6 to thank them for their service and sacrifice.