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By Gen. Daniel R. Hokanson, Chief of the National Guard Bureau
It’s hard to believe this is my last article for NGAUS. I am grateful to our association for giving me the chance to regularly share my thoughts with you.
As I reflect on my 42 years in uniform, I realize most of the incredible opportunities I’ve had in my life I owe to joining our nation’s military. The closest friends I will ever have, the chance to meet my amazing wife, educational opportunities I only dreamed of, experiences around the globe serving our nation with some of the greatest people I will ever know, the ability to provide for my family and the opportunity to fly were all possible because I made the choice to join the profession of arms and wear the cloth of our nation.
It has been the honor of my life to serve as the chief of the National Guard Bureau. Over the past four years, as I’ve traveled across the 54 and visited our troops around the world, I have been continually impressed and inspired by you, our soldiers and airmen, and the families who help make your service possible.
Whether it was a training exercise, disaster response, a deployment or a drill, you demonstrated fierce dedication, expertise and professionalism. You gained a global perspective in working with your state partners. You showed resolve in the face of unprecedented crises, and your commitment never waned. I could not be prouder of our organization and its people.
My ultimate objective was to leave NGB even better than I found it, building on the legacies of the outstanding chiefs who came before me. With the help of "Team 29," we prioritized people, readiness, modernization and reform. We advocated for division alignment for the Army National Guard, established a unified NGB and successfully elevated the vice chief to a four-star role commensurate with the Guard’s role and responsibilities. We continue to fight for health care, our fighter squadrons and the future of our space professionals, and we continue to make progress. I could not be prouder of the team who helped make these past four years possible.
If you were looking through a transcript of my term as chief — every meeting with our troops, every discussion with our allies and partners, every conference, every speech and every office call on the Hill — you’d find a phrase I say more than any other: at the end of the day.
Like, "At the end of the day, we have to be ready when our nation and our communities need us."
"At the end of the day, you have to trust the team around you."
"At the end of the day, it’s about doing the right thing for our soldiers and airmen, and the families who support us."
I think I’m drawn to that expression because it takes everything into consideration — you have plans and you have challenges. You make headway, and you face setbacks. You know — contrary to what they told you in the movie "Apollo 13" — failure is always an option. But that doesn’t stop you from focusing on the mission and giving your best every single day.
Because, at the end of the day, each of us must answer the questions: "what did I do to make this organization better? What did I do to make our nation stronger?"
For me, today actually is "At the end of the day," and in my final assessment, because of you, the Guard have kept our promise to America — a promise to be "Always Ready, Always There."
We never missed a deployment to the combatant commands around the world. We never missed a call to respond to communities in need. We never wavered in our commitment to our allies and partners — and we continue to strengthen those vital relationships.
We faced down a pandemic, widespread protests and civil unrest and an unprecedented threat to the peaceful transition of power. We deployed overseas, deterring our competitors and defending our nation. We cleared away debris from devastated communities, offering food, water and hope in the aftermath of disasters. We stood with our Ukrainian partners after Russia’s horrific invasion —continuing training and support that’s endured for more than 30 years.
Now, I want to be clear: these are not the accomplishments of Dan Hokanson. These are the accomplishments of our 440,000 soldiers and airmen and their families. These are the accomplishments of citizen-warriors. These are the accomplishments earned through their service and their sacrifices, and the countless sacrifices of their families. It has been my greatest honor to represent you and to tell your incredible story.
Because at the end of the day, what matters most is not "what" at all — it is a "who." People are the foundation of our armed forces. People — with their personal dreams and worries, their individual strengths and flaws — make everything we do possible.
They are the colleagues we serve beside. They are the citizens we defend. They are the families we love.
The Constitution we swear an oath to begins with the words "We the People." Those who wear the cloth of our nation swear a solemn oath to that Constitution — an oath many of us have taken dozens of times. We cannot, and must not, become numb to the power, weight and responsibility of these words: "I will support the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic." "That I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same." "That I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I’m about to enter."
These words remind us of our grave obligation at a time when competitors threaten to topple the rules-based international order, and political division undermines our national stability.
I am finishing my term as NGB chief — but that does not mean the challenges of the world are finished with us.
But I am a man of faith: faith in God, faith in the institutions that underpin our society — and faith in good people, and great leaders, to do the right thing. And I have full faith in the 30th NGB chief and the soldiers and airmen of the National Guard. I have full faith in the Guard’s future.
While the past two decades have radically transformed and professionalized our organization, the past four years have sharply focused on our importance and our value. The challenges before us only loom larger. The global environment grows ever-more volatile. Our competitors and adversaries are formidable. But then again — so are we.
We are the nation that established the principles of federalism and the consent of the governed. We are the nation that led the rules-based international order. We are the nation built on the freedom of worship, where speech, press and assembly are protected for all. We are the nation that is the partner of choice, and the most-prized ally in the world. We are the nation that lifted billions out of poverty, championed democracy and fought back the forces of tyranny.
Every single one of us has helped make that possible. These are the values we defend. This is what we vow to uphold.
My time in uniform has come to an end, but my obligations to our nation are not over. I believe we have a duty to lead, and to lead by example, both in and out of uniform. We have a duty to preserve what our forebears fought for, a duty to continue the quest for a more-perfect union.
We honor the traditions enshrined in our Constitution — free speech, the rule of law, the separation of powers. We honor the humanity of our fellow Americans and all that unites us.
We are one country — the United States of America. We are still the nation that established a worldwide precedent for openness, democracy and freedom. We are still the nation where good people make great things happen, where there are men and women willing to sacrifice everything for the sustainment of all we hold dear.
We are still the nation that inspired a kid from Happy Camp, California, to raise his right hand, and promise to defend our Constitution with his life — and all his children promised to do the same. We are bound together by a sacred code to uphold the Constitution of our great nation and all it stands for. In this we have not, cannot and will not fail.
We are innovative and adaptable. We are prepared and professional. We are informed and experienced. We are well-trained, well-positioned and well-led. And we will keep our promise to America — because we are the National Guard: "Always Ready, Always There."
