News Release

To the Soldiers and Airmen of the National Guard
June 16, 2022 — MORE

Capital Guardians leaders join with leadership at National Guard Bureau and across the Department of Defense to celebrate Juneteenth! Juneteenth became a federal holiday in 2021. It marks the occasion in 1868 when federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to take control of the state and ensure that all enslaved people would be freed. As part of the celebration, DCNG has made Friday, June 17, 2022, Family Day to allow all our service members to spend much-deserved time with their friends, families, and community. It provides an added opportunity to reflect on this very meaningful federal holiday.

To the Soldiers and Airmen of the National Guard
May 30, 2022 — MORE

Today, we honor those who have given what President Abraham Lincoln called the last full measure of devotion in defense of our great country. On Memorial Day, take time to remember their sacrifice and the freedoms we enjoy today because they gave up all of their tomorrows. #MemorialDay #CapitalGuardians

Bringing hope to Tradewinds 2022: DoD, NFE Planning Assures Western Hemisphere Prosperity
May 14, 2022 — In a sea of approximately 1,500 military uniformed, civilian, and contracted personnel, a family wearing polo t-shirts with a non-for-profit name on them stands out. While the polos function to make the non-profit representatives distinct from the Tradewinds 22 exercise personnel, when it comes to the exercise itself, World Hope International is completely integrated, even from the planning phase... MORE

Members of the Regional Security System and the president of World Hope International (center) pose in front of the plane chartered to bring them and donated goods to the Tradewinds 22 exercise. Tradewinds is a Caribbean-focused exercise designed to expand the region’s capability to mitigate, plan for, and respond to crises; strengthen partnerships; increase regional training capacity and interoperability; develop new and refine existing Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) during the SOP Development Conference; determine SOPs to be exercised; determine regional process for SOP validation; enhance ability to defend Exclusive Economic Zones; increase U.S./ally/partner readiness; promote human rights and adherence to shared international norms and values; fully integrate women into the force; and increase maritime domain awareness to deter IUU fishing activities. (Courtesy photo)

Today in 1918, Soldiers and officers of the DCNG's Separate Battalion of Infantry arrived in France for service in World War 1
April 13, 2022 — On this day in Capital Guardians history: April 13, 1918, Soldiers and officers of the D.C. National Guard’s 1st Separate Battalion of Infantry arrived in France for service in World War I. The unit’s origins date to Reconstruction but it was formerly organized in the D.C. Militia in 1891, during the early Jim Crow era, as a segregated (“separate”) and all-black unit. Re-designated as the 1st Battalion, 372nd Infantry Regiment in January 1918, the D.C. Guardsmen served with a distinction and bravery that rivaled the famed “Harlem Hellfighters.” The proud legacy and lineage of the 1-372nd Infantry Battalion survives today in the 372nd Military Police Battalion, D.C. Army National Guard... MORE

“Company ‘B’ 372nd Infantry,” Unit photograph. Original Photographer: Unknown. Date Taken: Nov. 1918-Jan. 1919. District of Columbia National Guard Collections, D.C. Armory, Washington, D.C. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Jerry Saslav)

D.C. Guard, USO Open Nation’s First USO Lounge Located in a National Guard Armory
April 13, 2022 — (April 12, 2022) - The D.C. National Guard (DCNG) and the USO National Capital District today opened the nation’s first permanent USO lounge located in a National Guard armory. The lounge in the Family Readiness Suite at the D.C. Armory, 2001 East Capitol Street SE in the District, is the first in a pilot program designed to put USO facilities in National Guard Readiness Centers nationwide... MORE

National Guard Bureau Chief Gen. Daniel Hokanson and his wife, Kelly, join DCNG adjutant general Brig. Gen. Aaron Dean, USO National Capital executive director Lisa Marie Riggins and DCNG Family Programs director Maj. Michael Robinson to cut the ribbon on the new USO lounge at the D.C. Armory April 12, 2022. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Senior Master Sgt. Craig Clapper)

D.C. Army Guard Opens First Recruiting Office in the District in More Than a Decade
March 18, 2022 — (March 18, 2022) -- For the first time in more than a decade, the D.C. Army National Guard has opened a storefront recruiting office in the District... MORE

D.C. Army Guard to Open First Recruiting Office in the District in More Than a Decade Tomorrow at 10 a.m.
March 17, 2022 — The D.C. Army National Guard (DCNG) will open its first storefront recruiting office in the District in more than a decade during a ceremony at 10 a.m. Friday, March 18, 2022. Members of the media are invited to tour the new office and to interview senior D.C. Army National Guard leaders... MORE

DOD Approves MPD and USCP Request for National Guard Traffic Control Support
February 22, 2022 — Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III has approved requests from the District of Columbia Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) for District of Columbia National Guard (DCNG) assistance with traffic control during First Amendment demonstrations expected in the city in the coming days... MORE

DC National Guard hold groundbreaking ceremony for new recruiting office
July 28, 2021 — The D.C. National Guard held a groundbreaking ceremony here to mark the beginning of construction for the new Storefront Recruiting Office for the D.C. Army National Guard... MORE

District of Columbia National Guard leadership surveys the future site of the District of Columbia National Guard recruiting storfront in Washington, D.C., July 28. The storefront office, which is leased on behalf of the D.C. Army National Guard by the Baltimore District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers through their Real Estate mission, will provide a more accessible location to potential recruits in the District. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Anthony Small)

To the deployed members of the 113th Wing, their families and friends
July 21, 2021 — Through times of peace and times of war, the D.C. National Guard has honored its commitments to the nation and the District of Columbia. The D.C. National Guard has been there from the fields of France and the beaches of Normandy to the skies above D.C. on 9/11, and protection of the U.S. Capitol. We remain ready and vigilant... MORE

A U.S. Air Force F-16C Fighting Falcon from District of Columbia Air National Guard’s 113th Wing, known as the “Capital Guardians,” lands on the flight line at Prince Sultan Air Base, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, July 9, 2021. The wing deployed a contingent of F-16s to PSAB to reinforce the base’s defensive capabilities, provide operational depth, and support U.S. Central Command operations in the region. (U.S. Air Force Photo by Senior Airman Samuel Earick)