2022 State Defense Force Of The Year

We are proud to announce The 2022 State Defense Force of The Year is The Texas State Guard.

The Texas State Guard leads The State Defense Force Team in 2022. With 1800 active troops, The Texas State Guard has the largest State Defense Force in the country. The organizatio performed a multitude of missions in 2022,  with nearly a third of them being Joint Task Force missions with The National Guard. Along with the highest mission count out of all State Defense Forces they also have approximately 400 soldiers on permanent Active Duty. The most of any State Defense Force. Some of these troops are assisting with Major operations such as Operation Border Star and Operation Drawbridge, both Joint Task Force missions with The National Guard, while other troops are serving as Full Time Active Duty Recruiters & Chaplains. No other State Defense Force has as many troops on permanent Active Duty.

The Texas Military Department offers full time active duty positions to any Texas State Guard member who wishes to make The Texas State Guard their full time career. This level of opportunity is rare in The State Defense Force community.

On to missions, The Texas State Guard performed a wide variety of missions. One of the most important is Search & Rescue (SAR). The Texas State Guard ensures all their soldiers are SAR trained so during a statewide emergency they can deploy troops to assist in rescuing stranded citizens. They also have a Search & Rescue Maritime Unit which is extremely useful following a flood or severe weather event. This elite unit also provides underwater salvage and recovery capability. This unit is so experienced and skilled they were tasked with performing repairs to historic Battleship, U.S.S Texas.

Other important Texas State Guard missions include Shelter Management, Cyber Defense with The National Guard, as well as Operation Border Health Preparedness. Border Health Preparedness is an extremely important mission where the Texas State Guard deploys a large part of their organization to low income communities along The US – Mexico border. They provide a wealth of Free medical services from Full Physicals, Dental operations to Covid-19 Vaccinations. The Texas State Guard has been participating in this mission for over 20 years, saving families thousands in medical expenses.

Alongside the dozens of missions they performed, The Texas State Guard has one of the most vigorous training programs among The State Defense Forces. Each soldier is required to maintain their physical health, meeting the same Physical Training (PT) standards as The National Guard. On top of this each unit ensures their soldiers meet these standards by testing their fitness during their monthly training drills. This ensures each soldier is able to handle any of the physical tasks and endure long periods of stress that long term missions inflict.

Next up, Public Affairs. The Texas State Guard Public Affairs Department did an incredible job in 2022. Posting a news or mission update every few days on their main social media feeds. They also have each of their Brigades host and manage their own social media pages which are updated at least once a week. This level of exposure is unprecedented in The State Defense Force community. This Public Affairs Team sets the bar for State Defense Forces.

So based on the dozens of missions performed, the incredible standards of their troops and the amazing work of their Public Affairs Team, we are naming The Texas State Guard, State Defense Force Of The Year.

Runners Up:

#2. The New York Guard

#3. Georgia State Defense Force

The New York Guard & Georgia State Defense Force both had an astounding year. The held the second and third spot with the amount of missions performed. They also performed a high amount of missions that were Joint Task Force with The National Guard. Their Public Affairs Departments perform very well, providing consistent news updates on their social media platforms and responded to inquiries very quickly.

If you’d like to learn more about The Texas State Guard check out the latest episode of Commanders Briefing where we sat down with the Commanding General of The Texas State Guard,  Major General Anthony Woods.

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