Woods/Harlan Appointments Texas Military Forces Museum News

On June 18, 2022, Texas Governor Greg Abbott appointed BG Anthony Woods as the Commanding General of the Texas State Guard for a term to expire at the pleasure of the Governor. BG Anthony Woods of Frisco was serving as the Acting Commanding General of the Texas State Guard.

He received an early commission as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Army in 1984 through the ROTC program at the University of Texas at Arlington. He served as Battalion Executive Officer during Operation Noble Eagle which was the first deployment of troops to protect America’s infrastructure from Terrorist attacks after 9-11. In 2005, BG Woods became the first African American Commander of the 1-112th Armor, leading his unit in the first American training exercise in the country of Romania after the fall of the Soviet Union. He has served in numerous leadership positions throughout his 37 years of military service.

Additionally, he has extensive experience in security and border operations both as a former Dallas Police Officer and a Special Agent (SA) with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and through his military service. He served as Deputy Commander for Operation Jump Start, an initiative to secure the Southwest border, and as Deputy Commander of the Joint Interagency Task Force designed to support Law Enforcement during a disaster in Texas. As a Special Agent he served in the Los Angeles Field Division before moving to the Houston Field Division Waco Resident Office in 1999. In 2005, Woods transferred to the Houston office where he served on several High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area teams (HIDTA) before moving to the technical group. BG Woods retired from the DEA in June 2018.

BG Woods received a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from Texas Christian University and a Master of Science in Strategic Studies from the United States Army War College. H

TEXAS STATE GUARD NAMES CSM HARLAN THOMPSON SENIOR ENLISTED ADVISOR

Effective June 25, 2022, the Commanding General of the Texas State Guard, BG Anthony Woods appointed CSM Harlan L. Thompson to serve as the Senior Enlisted Advisor for the Texas State Guard. CSM Thompson was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and graduated from Judson High School in Converse, Texas in 1986. He began his service in the Texas State Guard in August of 2003, when he enlisted as an E-1 in the Texas State Guard Air Component.

After completing Initial Entry Training, CSM Thompson was assigned to the various units in the 4th Air Wing in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. In 2014, he transferred to the 5th Air Wing in San Antonio and was the Logistics NCOIC (A-4). In 2016, he transferred to the Component Headquarters, where he held the positions of Operations NCOIC (A3), Administration and Personnel NCOIC (A-1), Component Recruiter, and Security Forces Manager. His last position at the Air Component Command was as the Senior Enlisted Advisor.

When the Texas State Guard reorganized in January of 2020, CSM Thompson transferred to the 1st Brigade where he served as the NCOIC of the Reception and Training Unit, and later served as the Security Support Unit Coordinator for the 1st Brigade. CSM Thompson then transferred to the T-7, where he served as the NCOIC of the Direct Commission Officer Orientation Course. CSM Thompson is a graduate of the Airman’s Leadership Course, Basic NCO Leadership Course, Advanced NCO Leadership Course and the Texas State Guard Senior Leader Course. H

TEXAS MILITARY FORCES MUSEUM

PUTTING YOUR HANDS ON HISTORY

The Texas Military Forces Museum conducted a “Hands on History” event on July 2. Hands on History included uniformed re-enactors who displayed weapons like muskets, bazookas and machine guns from the Texas Revolution through Vietnam and weapons currently used by the National Guard today. The entire museum was open for visitors to explore. Attendees were able touch and hold the weapons as well as climb up inside aircrafts and armored vehicles and TOUCH HISTORY. It was a very educational experience for the entire family! This is a program that the museum holds every year so if you missed this event keep an eye on their website for future events. For more information visit their website at www.texasmilitaryforcesmuseum.org. H

THE MUSEUM IS NOW ACCEPTING INTERNSHIP APPLICATIONS FOR FALL 2022

The Texas Military Forces Museum intern will be intimately involved in learning the operations of a large museum with a small staff. The intern will engage in all aspects of museum work including cataloging, collections management, exhibit design and construction, special and educational events, fulfilling research requests, giving guided tours, administrative duties to include non-profit retail management, and operational management of the museum. The intern will become well-versed in use of the Past Perfect curatorial database program used by all military and Federal museums. At the end of the internship the successful candidate will be well-grounded in the curatorial, exhibit, operational and education components of museum operation. The museum is open to additional requirements that may be required by faculty for intern to receive course credit. H