Francis D. Vavala

Francis D. Vavala
Major General Francis D. Vavala
Born (1947-06-28) June 28, 1947 (age 77)
Delaware
AllegianceUnited States
Service / branchUnited States Army
Delaware Army National Guard
Years of service1967–2017
RankGeneral (Delaware)
Major General (federal)
CommandsDelaware National Guard
AwardsLegion of Merit
Meritorious Service Medal (3)
Army Commendation Medal (2)

General Francis D. Vavala (born June 28, 1947) is a retired Army National Guard officer who served as the Adjutant General of the State of Delaware. He received the promotion in February 1999 after the retirement of Major General George Hastings.[1] In April 2017, Vavala was promoted to general in the Delaware Militia in honor of 50 years of service. He is the first Delaware National Guardsman to achieve four-star rank and one of the very few American service members to have risen from private to four-star general.[2]

As the Adjutant General, Vavala was the highest-ranking member of the Delaware National Guard. He was responsible for managing the affairs of the Army and Air National Guard and for advising Governor of the State of Delaware, who is the Commander-in-Chief of the Guard.[3]

  1. ^ "Resume Of Service Career Of George Kenneth Hastings, Major General, (ARNGUS) Retired effective Jan 31, 1999". ng.mil. 2006. Archived from the original on August 5, 2012. Retrieved May 7, 2012.
  2. ^ Blakely, Gwendolyn. "Delaware Governor reviews troops; General Vavala honored with fourth star". Defense Visual Information Distribution System. DVIDs. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  3. ^ "Section 171: Governor As Commander In Chief; Call Out Of National Guard For State Duty". Delaware Administrative Code. State of Delaware. 2012. Retrieved May 7, 2012.