Virginia Defense Force 2024 Year In Review
RICHMOND, Va. — The Virginia Defense Force had a busy year in 2024 celebrating its 40th anniversary, supporting Virginia National Guard domestic response operations and VDF personnel volunteering their time to assisting with multiple events across the state. The VDF also conducted numerous training events in order to improve skills, develop leaders and maintain a high state of readiness.
Virginia Defense Force 40th Anniversary
Members of the Virginia Defense Force observed the organization’s 40th birthday with a cake cutting May 4 in Richmond, Virginia. With roots going back to the Virginia Volunteers in World War I and the Virginia Protective Force and Virginia State Guard in World War II, the VDF was formally re-established April 18, 1984, and now serves as the all-volunteer reserve to the VNG. View photos on the VDF web site at https://vdfpio.info/5cy24f6k.
Maj. Gen. James W. Ring, the Adjutant General of Virginia, presented Brig. Gen. (Va.) Richard Diddams, the Commander of the VDF, with the Governor of Virginia proclamation celebrating the VDF’s 40th birthday June 1 in Richmond, Virginia. Joining the presentation were some of the VDF’s longest serving members: Command Sgt. Maj. (Va.) Chris Howlett, Lt. Col. (Va.) Peyton Owens, Col. (Va.) Kent Brinkley and Lt. Col. (Va.) Rick Murdock as well as Brig. Gen. Todd Hubbard, the VNG Director of the Joint Staff. Read the proclamation on the Governor of Virginia web site at https://vdfpio.info/nhwz3reh.
Master Sgt. (Va.) Robert Dinwiddie displayed the VDF 40th Anniversary Challenge Coin Nov. 3 at Fort Barfoot, Virginia. Dinwiddie represented a group of currently serving and retired VDF personnel who designed the coin, and he presented one to Brig. Gen. Rich Diddams, Commander of the Virginia Defense Force. The coins were distributed to unit and section leaders to be handed out to the entire membership of the VDF. View photos on Facebook at https://vdfpio.info/5yr7wy8f.
VDF Welcomes New Leaders, Recognizes Retirees
Diddams was promoted to brigadier general and took command of the Virginia Defense Force June 1 in Richmond, Virginia. Ring promoted Diddams, administered the oath of office and presided over the ceremony officially transferring authority and responsibility of the VDF to him. Ring announced May 28 Diddams would succeed Brig. Gen. (Va.) Justin P. Carlitti Sr. as the VDF commander, and Carlitti retired after nearly 10 years of leading the organization. Diddams previously served as the VDF deputy chief of staff for training and operations, and Ring named him interim VDF commander April 22. Read more on the VDF web site at https://vdfpio.info/pj7ydmrd.
Col. (Va.) Rodney Brickell was sworn in to the VDF Aug. 3 in Richmond, Virginia, and serves as the VDF chief of staff. Diddams administered the oath of office. Brickell served in the Virginia Air National Guard for more than 37 years culminating with duty as the J2 joint intelligence officer on the Virginia National Guard Joint Staff.
Diddams announced Nov. 4 that Howlett would serve as the new senior enlisted leader for the Virginia Defense Force, succeeding Command Sgt. Maj. (Va.) Christopher Frederick Sr. Howlett joined the VDF in 1999 as a private and served at the Warrenton Armory. In 2002 he was as assigned to Leesburg Armory and rose to the rank of first sergeant. In 2015 he became a battalion command sergeant major and in 2017 he became a regimental command sergeant major. Read more on the VDF web site at https://vdfpio.info/2p8h2zkd.
Owens received the VDF Distinguished Service Medal in recognition of his 40 years of dedicated service to the VDF and is placed on the retired list of the Virginia militia, unorganized, as a colonel during a retirement ceremony Aug. 3 at the VDF Headquarters in Richmond, Virginia. Owens was the longest serving member of the VDF, having joined soon after the organization stood back up in 1984. He previously served on active duty in the U.S. Army as well as the U.S. Army Reserve and the Virginia Army National Guard with a total of 54 years of uniformed service.
Currently-serving and retired VDF personnel gather for a holiday meal Dec. 7 in Richmond, Virginia. Diddams presented awards for outstanding duty performance as well as recognition for service of retired personnel. In addition to holiday decorations, VDF historical items were also on display for the gathering. View photos on Flickr at https://vdfpio.info/4zx98rn3.
Domestic Response Support
Members of the VDF provided logistics distribution, administrative, operations center augmentation and communications support to VNG Soldiers preparing for possible severe weather response operations related to Tropical Storm Debby Aug. 7-10 in Richmond, Lynchburg and Danville, Virginia. The VNG staged Soldiers with tactical trucks capable of high water transportation at VNG facilities in Lynchburg, Danville and Petersburg, and the personnel were ready to conduct missions Thursday morning. With no requests from localities for assistance, VNG and VDF troops transitioned to routine operations late in the day Aug. 9, and select VDF personnel remained on duty through Aug. 10 to collect all distributed supplies and equipment. Read more on the VDF web site at https://vdfpio.info/yckmvzxx.
VDF personnel supported the VNG during the response to Hurricanes Helene and Milton from Sept. 25 to Oct. 11. They provided administrative support to personnel coming on state active duty as well equipment and sustainment support to multiple VNG teams in Southwest Virginia performing debris removal and road clearing operations and as well commodity distribution to the local population. They secured locally-sourced equipment and supply augmentation. VDF personnel also staged food and water for air and ground units deploying to Florida from the State Military Reservation in Virginia Beach a Fort Barfoot. They safely drove approximately 3,500 miles and managed an estimated $35,000 in cargo. View photos on the VDF web site at https://vdfpio.info/2t28rfjf.
Training to Maintain Readiness
Members of VDF conducted a statewide readiness exercise May 4 at multiple locations across Virginia. Company-level command posts were established in Fairfax, Winchester, Warrenton, Lynchburg and Virginia Beach, and the VDF’s joint operations center was established in Richmond. The exercise tested organic communications, access control and operations center augmentation support capabilities in a simulated severe weather scenario. Col. Christopher Dunn, the Virginia National Guard J3 director of joint operations, visited the VDF operations center to learn more about VDF capabilities. Read more on VDF web site at https://vdfpio.info/2p8twvpv.
Retired U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Craig Crenshaw, Virginia Secretary of Veterans and Defense Affairs, visited members of the VDF during a multi-unit training assembly Nov. 2 at Fort Barfoot, Virginia. Crenshaw learned more about the organization and thanked the VDF personnel for volunteering their time to conduct training. Crenshaw started the visit meeting members of the VDF Headquarters staff, visited the VDF’s 31st Cyber Battalion and received an information brief and also received a brief on VDF communications capabilities. Read more about the visit on the VDF web site at https://vdfpio.info/2p8eeuk7.
Training conducted over the three days of the MUTA included land navigation, point of distribution operation, officer and noncommissioned officer professional development and wellness. VDF personnel also conducted classroom training, including instruction on the Statewide Agencies Radio System and Barrett Radio packages. Six VDF personnel and two Virginia National Guard Soldiers passed the Federal Communication Commission amateur radio license exam administered by the Virginia Defense Force Radio Group, qualifying them for the entry-level Technician class license. VDF personnel who passed the exam are now authorized to wear the “Technician” tab on their uniforms. View photos on Flickr at https://vdfpio.info/wakpk3rn.
Just a month earlier, VDF personnel conducted the “Highland Guardian” statewide readiness exercise with goal to conduct safe operations at home station armories across the state incorporating our organic communications and access control capabilities in a simulated winter storm environment. VDF personnel fielded approximately 30 notional emergency response requests while managing interruptions developed by “Red Cell” operatives testing vulnerabilities in access control and communication security.
Supporting Virginia National Guard, Communities
Members of the VDF volunteered their time to provide traffic control for the VNG’s Virginia Beach-based 529th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion Headquarters, 329th Regional Support Group departure ceremony Jan. 28 in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The 529th CSSB deployed to Poland in a federal active duty status and served under the command of U.S. Army’s 3rd Division Sustainment Brigade to provide sustainment command and control and support to forward-stationed U.S. and allied forces in the region. View photos on Facebook at https://vdfpio.info/mrxed3nu.
Members of the VDF joined the VNG in representing the modern military at Jamestown Settlement’s 40th Anniversary Military Through the Ages March 16-17 in Jamestown, Virginia. VDF personnel displayed historical items and educated attendees about VDF missions and capabilities. Maj. Gen. James W. Ring, the Adjutant General of Virginia, visited troops and thanked them for supporting the event. Ring presented his challenge coin to individuals identified by their chain of command in recognition of their outstanding support. Read more and view photos on the VDF web site at https://vdfpio.info/ydwyxxby.
Volunteers with the VDF supported in-processing for VNG Soldiers and Airmen ahead of a mass casualty training exercise May 21 at Fort Barfoot, Virginia. The Soldiers and Airmen are assigned to the Richmond-based 34th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and High-Yield Explosives Enhanced Response Force Package, or CERFP. The VDF members assisted the administrative in-processing before the exercise, giving them practical experience in rapid response situations.
Members of the VDF volunteered their time to provide access control and traffic management assistance at the Commonwealth’s Memorial Day Ceremony May 27 and Commonwealth’s Veterans Day Ceremony Nov. 11 at the Virginia War Memorial in Richmond, Virginia.
Lt. Col. (Va.) Bryan Graham and Capt. (Va.) David Kruse conducted classroom instruction at the Virginia Army National Guard’s Medical Command 68W Combat Medic Recertification Course August 15 at Fort Barfoot, Virginia. Graham is a licensed nurse practitioner and Kruse is a board-certified emergency room doctor, and both have nearly three decades of experience. In addition to teaching blocks of instruction, both officers also fielded questions from students and shared their real-world knowledge and experience. View photos at https://vdfpio.info/3x2zepub.
Training With the Virginia National Guard
VDF chaplains and religious affairs specialists joined their counterparts from the Virginia Army National Guard and Virginia Air National Guard for a two-day Joint Chaplain Annual Sustainment Training event April 13-14 at the Virginia National Guard’s Sergeant Bob Slaughter Headquarters at Defense Supply Center Richmond, Virginia.
VDF legal professionals attend the Virginia Army National Guard Judge Advocate General Conference Aug. 24 at the State Military Reservation in Virginia Beach, Virginia. More than 20 full time and traditional VaARNG JAG officers and enlisted personnel joined three Virginia Defense Force officers and a number of guest speakers, including Maj. Gen. Joseph A. DiNonno, Commanding General of the 29th Infantry Division, for the two-day conference. Topics included ethics, contract and fiscal law, domestic operations and career management. VDF personnel had an active role in conference planning and supplied a speaker on legal ethics for military lawyers and a speaker on military attorney wellness and stress mitigation. View photos at https://vdfpio.info/2p8m7kc6.
Focus on Wellness
Diddams published his guidance for the VDF comprehensive wellness program Aug. 26. Diddams wrote that a comprehensive wellness program was being instituted throughout the VDF to help each member thrive and flourish in their daily lives as well as ensure when called upon the Adjutant General, the VDF and its personnel will have the capability to execute any mission it receives. Read the full guidance on the VDF web site at https://vdfpio.info/ycnczxac and check out VDF wellness resources at https://vdfpio.info/2p8n4av9.
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