First Black Woman Assumes Command of Fort Eustis

By Rosaland Tyler
Associate Editor
New Journal and Guide

Army Col. Tanya S. McGonegal  recently became the first Black woman appointed to command Fort Eustis.

A brief ceremony was held at Mullan Hall on Feb. 9 to welcome McGonegal, the 13th commander of the U.S. Northern Command’s Joint Task Force-Civil Support (JTF-CS). McGonegal is a trailblazing command leader who has made history throughout her career by being the first Black female commander to lead every unit she’s commanded to date. She has served as an executive officer six times, according to news reports. She succeeds U.S. Army Col. Lamar Parsons.

“The world is unpredictable, and changing, but we all should sleep better at night knowing that this command will always be ready to go at a moment’s notice,” Parsons said at the recent change of command ceremony, according to Defense Visual Information Distribution Service.

McGonegal, the new commander, told the audience at the recent change of command ceremony, “I’m ready and eager to lead and work alongside this team as we continue the tradition of professionalism and dedication to our unique, joint mission. As we embark on this chapter, let’s remain, like our motto says, ‘Ever Vigilant, Always Ready.’”

The new commander has assumed increasingly responsible positions since she joined the Virginia Army National Guard in 1997. Two years later, she was the only female in her class to graduate from Virginia State Officer Candidate School.

“I knew that if I joined the military, I would have the opportunity to be more decisive,” Col. McGonegal told WTKR-TV, News 3 in a recent interview.

“After college, they were offering a program where you can go into officer candidate school right after college, and that’s what I selected to do. And 26 years later here I am, it’s wonderful.”

Her resume includes a nearly decade-long stint in the Army National Guard military police. She also played a role in critical missions, including Operation Noble Eagle in 2001, Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003, and Hurricane Katrina relief efforts in 2005.

Prior to assuming her new post, she previously served as the division chief for strategy and policy in the Joint Manpower and Personnel directorate for the National Guard Bureau.

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“I’m looking forward to working with the service members and families,” she said in a recent statement. “We do a lot of exercises. Our unit is trained for the worst day … We’re supporting local and state-level emergency responders, whether that’s law enforcement, firefighters, [or] EMS.”

JTF-CS is the only standing, no-notice Joint Task Force in the country that conducts chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear response and all-hazards defense support to civil authority’s operations.