U.S. Army Sgt. Nicolas White, noncommissioned officer of the year, and Georgia State Defence Force Cpl. Dachi Matiashvili, enlisted Soldier of the year competed in the 2025 Georgia Army National Guard Best Warrior Competition. Both were also awarded the Georgia Meritorious Service Medal, while Georgia State Defense Force Spc. Samual Brown received the Chad Mercer Award during a ceremony at Clay National Guard Center in Marietta, Georgia, March 14, 2025. The competition demonstrates the readiness and lethality of Georgia Army National Guard Soldiers by testing the competitors with physical fitness assessments, written exams, and other warrior tasks and battle drills. (U.S. Army National Guard video by Spc. Chasity Williams)
Major General Matthew Smith retired from military service during a ceremony at the Clay National Guard Center in Marietta, Ga. February 28, 2025. Lieutenant General Christopher Laneve, commander of the Eighth Army, was the presiding officer for the ceremony honoring Smith’s 32 years of service in the Army and Georgia National Guard.
In his remarks, Laneve chronicled Smith’s career and praised him for his decades of leadership.
Smith was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in 1993 and subsequently assigned as a platoon leader in Company A, 2nd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment at Fort Stewart and Kuwait. Joining the Georgia National Guard in 1996, Smith initially served as a Signal Platoon leader in Company H, 121st Infantry Regiment...
Lieutenant General Christopher Laneve, commander of the Eighth Army, presents Maj. Gen. Matthew Smith with the Defense Superior Service Medal for his leadership in command of Joint Task Force North from December 2022 to December 2024. Smith retired after nearly 32 years of military service during a ceremony at the Clay National Guard Center in Marietta, Ga. February 28, 2025.
