LATHAM – Saratoga Springs resident Raymond Shields, a veteran of the war in Afghanistan, was promoted to two-star Major General in the New York Army National Guard on Thursday, Aug. 10 during a ceremony at the Division of Military and Naval Affairs headquarters in Latham.
Shields, who joined the Army Reserve in 1981, has served as the commander of the 10,300 soldiers of the New York Army National Guard since June of 2016.
Shields has served in the New York Army National Guard since May of 1983 when he was appointed as a second lieutenant through the Reserve Officers Training Corps program at Marion Military Institute, in Marion, Alabama before joining the 205th Support Group in Troy, New York.
Shields has served as the executive officer and deputy commander of the 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team and was the brigade chief of staff during its deployment to Afghanistan in 2008 and 2009.
The brigade was responsible for Combined Joint Task Force Phoenix, the mission to train the Afghan Army and police headquartered in Kabul, Afghanistan.
in October 2011, Shields was named New York Army National Guard Chief of Staff. He served as Director of Joint Staff for the New York National Guard, responsible for coordinating the National Guard response to state emergencies from 2012 to 2016.
Shields' awards include the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star, the Meritorious Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Afghan Campaign Medal, NATO Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Combat Infantryman Badge.
New York Army National Guard Soldiers have served in Iraq, Kuwait, and Afghanistan and responded to snowstorms, hurricanes, and flooding here in New York.
