We’ve wanted to give you a heads up at what’s going on at StateDefenseForce.com, and we’re excited to share all the progress we’ve made thanks to your continued support. As proud members of this growing community, your contributions help us shine a national spotlight on State Defense Forces, expand awareness, and develop new ways to support our Soldiers. Below is a quick rundown of what we’ve been working the past month:
- Commanders Briefing Podcasts
- We held and conducted a Podcast interview with the new Commanding General of The Texas State Guard Major General (TX) Roger Sheridan.
- The interview was edited by our staff and submitted for review by The Texas State Guard PAO for approval for public release.
- Once approved we will publish the audio podcast on Patreon for Corporal Members ($5/mo) and higher.
- We are working with the Commanding General of the Maryland Defense Force, Brigadier General (MD) Gregory J. Juday, and the Maryland Military Department to schedule an appearance on the show with the Adjutant General of Maryland, Major General Janeen L. Birckhead. We are currently coordinating to find a time slot when both Generals are available.
- We held and conducted a Podcast interview with the new Commanding General of The Texas State Guard Major General (TX) Roger Sheridan.
- Scuttlebutt Podcast
- We are working with a few individuals to bring on the show to discuss events occurring in their State Defense Force. They are currently obtaining authorization from their commands so they can participate.
- If you want someone specific on the show, please vote or comment on who you would like us to bring on the show via this link.
- We’ve been working with a contractor for a few months on the layout and design of the State Defense Force 2024 Magazine. Unfortunately we ran into many roadblocks and design incompatibilities. After investing a substantial amount of money we decided to take the work already done and have a staff member of StateDefenseForce.com finalize it so it meets our high standards.
- We project to have it done by July 2025.
- We apologize for the delay in the distribution of this magazine.
- Our Sergeant Major Tier Members ($20/mo) will receive the magazine delivered to their door by late June.
- Others can purchase the magazine when we do a limited sale of them in July.
- Here is a draft image of the magazine:
- Regarding The State Defense Force Calendar for 2025. We had difficulty working with the contractor we hired to find the exact dates of State Defense Force events, we have had to start from scratch last month with having our staff member take this on as another additional duty. We have made significant progress on the calendar so far and plan to have the calendar released this month.
- Sergeant Tier Members ($10/mo) will receive the digital version of our calendar by the end of June. This file can be easily integrated into your smartphone, tablet, or computer calendar and includes major State Defense Force dates. You’ll also be able to print out a full version to hang on your wall.
- Sergeant Major Tier Members ($20/mo). In addition to the digital version arriving in June, you’ll receive a professionally printed copy of the calendar delivered right to your doorstep in early July.
- At this time, we are only providing the birth and creation dates of currently active State Defense Forces. Our original plan was to include creation dates along with World War I, World War II, and Cold War activation and deactivation dates, among others. However, due to difficulties with our contractor in locating accurate historical records, we have decided to begin with the definitive dates that are supported by legislative bills and verifiable sources. The additional historical dates we have gathered will require further research and confirmation over the next few months before they can be added to the calendar.
- We apologize for the inconvenience and the delay in publishing the calendar. To thank you for your patience, we will be offering a coupon code to all Sergeant Tier and higher members for use at our State Defense Force Online Store. This coupon can be applied to apparel or accessories. Additionally, we will allow coupon stacking—so if you currently have a 15% (or higher) discount based on your Patreon tier, you can combine it with the extra 15% off we’re offering due to the calendar delay.
- Our staff member is currently hard at work learning a brand-new application—Adobe InDesign—mastering it while developing the calendar. Here is a sample image of our progress:
- Legislative Lobbying For The Development of New State Defense Forces
- We have a staff member actively working with members of the Arizona Legislature to propose a State Guard bill in the upcoming legislative session.
- That same staff member is also working with the Oklahoma Legislature to propose the establishment of a State Guard in their state. We are currently working to arrange a meeting between the Senator we’ve been collaborating with and the State’s Adjutant General to address any concerns.
- In The Field
- We have been working with The Texas State Guard Public Affairs Office & Texas Military Department for a member of our staff to fly to Texas in order to do a documentary on Operation Lone Star and The Texas State Guard contribution to it. The documentary would focus on the work State Guard soldiers have been performing, interviews with soldiers and a look at how their efforts have helped stem illegal border crossings.
- We submitted an official request a few weeks ago and have been checking on whether it’s been approved. We are still awaiting word from The Texas Military Department.
- We want to specifically highlight the incredible work and help by The Texas State Guard PAO Officer CW3 Farley on all his assistance.
- We have been working with The Texas State Guard Public Affairs Office & Texas Military Department for a member of our staff to fly to Texas in order to do a documentary on Operation Lone Star and The Texas State Guard contribution to it. The documentary would focus on the work State Guard soldiers have been performing, interviews with soldiers and a look at how their efforts have helped stem illegal border crossings.
- The Top State Defense Force Of 2024
- Due to a shortage of staff, we are still actively working on this project. While progress has been delayed, it is continuing slowly but steadily.
- We hope to announce the Top State Defense Force of 2024, the Runner-Up, and the Most Improved State Defense Force by August.
- We sincerely apologize for the delay. With a limited team—many of whom have full-time jobs and family responsibilities—it has been challenging to maintain our usual pace.
- Fiscal Budget 2025-2026
- We are starting to begin our campaign to obtain the budgets State Defense Forces are allotted by their state for the 2025-2026 calendar year.
- Troop Strength 2025
- We are starting to begin our campaign to obtain the troop strength of State Defense Forces for 2025. We utilize this information to provide state and federal legislators & agencies for possible new legislation concerning State Defense Forces.
- Recruiting Initiative (Our initiative aimed to refer ineligible applicants to their local State Defense Force when they were unable to join the U.S. Military. It would have also provided pamphlets and posters at Department of Defense Military Entrance Processing Stations (MEPS) for applicants who did not qualify due to medical or educational disqualifications.)
- Unfortunately, we had to pause this program due to staffing shortages, as well as the transfer of the U.S. Army Commander we had been working with—who was highly supportive of the initiative—to another command. We have been unable to continue the program under the new commander.
- Benefits of Each State Defense Force (We were planning to have a in-depth section of the website devoted to the benefits each State Defense Force soldier is entitled to and the process they need to start to obtain such benefits.)
- Unfortunately due to staffing shortages we had to pause this program. We are hoping the staff member we originally had assigned to the project is able to resume it in the coming months.
- Re-Activation of The New York Guard Social Media Websites
- Unfortunately after multiple attempts to communicate with The New York Guard command leadership as well as The Division of Military & Naval Affairs we have received little to no response to our inquiries about restoring The New York Guard Facebook page.
- We have been passionate that all State Defense Forces should maintain social media accounts on the major platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, etc. to highlight the training and missions their soldiers have performed. To put a spotlight and highlight the accomplishments of the force. Our upcoming Commanders Briefing Podcast with The Texas State Guard Commanding General goes into how important it is for a State Defense Force to maintain a active social media presence to grow and develop.
- State Defense Force News
- We continue to post State Defense Force news each week, even with the limited staff we have. We are able to post 4-5 news items per week all thanks to you our Patreon supporters who provide us with the funding to keep the website up and operating as well as being able to pay our news editor.
- State Defense Force Online Store
- We have slowed the release of new designs, primarily due to a shortage of staff and limited resources. Our team is dedicated and works hard to create high-quality, thoughtfully crafted designs. While we’ve considered hiring contractors, past experiences have shown it’s a 50/50 chance that the final product meets our standards or proves useful for our needs.
That’s all the news we have to share for our mid-year update. We just want to say thank you to each and everyone of you who have become part of our Patreon Program, from The Private $1/mo tier to The General $100/mo Tier. Every dollar counts and furthers the development of State Defense Forces nationwide.
We are looking for passionate, dedicated, and available individuals to join our team and support our ongoing programs. Opportunities range from moderating our Facebook and Discord channels to assisting with legislative projects we are actively developing.We offer industry-rate pay, benefits such as free merchandise from the State Defense Force Online Store, and valuable experience you can proudly add to your résumé—working with a respected nonprofit organization.
Email Us @ [email protected] for more information or visit our Jobs Webpage.
