Guam Guard’s Aguon honored at AG Corps Hall of Fame

Chief Warrant Officer 4 Bernard Aguon, center, with Jennifer Aguon and family, attends the National Adjutant General Ball in Columbia, South Carolina, last June 15, 2023. (Courtesy Photo)

FORT JACKSON, S.C.—The U.S. Army Adjutant General School honored its very best during a Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, which included the first member of the Guam National Guard, Chief Warrant Officer 4 Bernard Aguon of Ordot, Guam.

Aguon is a member of the Guam National Guard, currently assigned to the Army National Guard Bureau as the G1 Senior Personnel Advisor. He is the first member of the Guam Guard to be honored at the AG Hall of Fame.

Tracing back to 1775, the Adjutant General Corps provides personnel service support by providing human resources services and other types of personnel support. Read about Chief Aguon’s journey to the Hall of Fame in the interview below.

Q: What is the AG Hall of Fame, and what does one normally do to be inducted?

A: The Hall honors those who have made positive, lasting and significant contributions that perpetuate the history and traditions of the U.S. Army Adjutant General’s Corps. Inductees get a permanent display in the Hall of Honor at the AG School in Fort Jackson.

Chief Warrant Officer 4 Bernard Aguon displays the Guam Flag at the National Adjutant General Ball in Columbia, South Carolina, last June 15, 2023. (Courtesy Photo)

Q: What led to your being honored as a Distinguished Member of the AG Corps?

A: My induction was a result of managing the sustainment of and improving the case management process of IPPS-A [Integrated Personnel Pay System – Army] during Release 2.

Q: What does it mean to you to achieve this accomplishment?

A: As a human resource professional, this is the pinnacle of acknowledgement in my field and I am extremely humbled and deeply honored to be a part of U.S. Army AG Corps history. As only the second Chamorro following the late CW5 (ret.) Antonio B. Eclavea, I am grateful to have my name permanently engraved alongside Army HR legends. Over the course of the AG Corps’ 247-year history these HR experts have assumed responsibility for many critical personnel and administrative support functions serving to sustain America’s Army in peace and war. Among these functions are personnel accounting and strength reporting, casualty management, replacement operations, postal operations, morale welfare and recreational support, and a full range of personnel services essential to soldier readiness and commanders’ ability to effectively plan and conduct operations. It’s an honor to be a part of a branch that is heavily involved in force modernization and programs designed to improve the fighting effectiveness of our Army and we, the AG Corps, continue to develop new and increasingly efficient means of providing timely and dependable personnel support to Commanders and the entire Army family.

Q: Is there anything you’d like to add, or anyone you’d like to thank?

A: I never in my wildest dreams would have fathomed making such an indelible impression for not only the Army National Guard but the entire U.S. Army. I was asked once by a junior soldier, ‘Chief, how have you been able to serve for over 33 years, what’s your secret?’ My response was, ‘I’ve taken things and live one day at a time and in doing so, I provide my best effort in whatever I do be it personal or at work each day. I also try to do it with an enjoyable sense of happiness and content.’ It hasn’t been an easy road to travel but when you knock targets down one at a time (one day at a time), you can eventually look back over 33 plus years and see how much work was accomplished.

None of this of course would be possible without the support of my wife and best friend, Jennifer, who has been my sounding board and No. 1 everything throughout my career. Her patience and that of my children Rocco, Rio, Aurora, Andre, my mom, Annie, and the rest of my family is what keeps me motivated to perform at such high standards. My non-profit support network of the Guam Society of America, which I am currently president, has played a huge role in my success while working in the nation’s capital. I’d like to give a special shout out to my family who made the trip to witness my induction, including John and Virginia Ann Cruz, Johnny and Patty Aguon, Daniel and Xena Cruz, CW5 (ret.) Francis and Margaret Pablo. I’ve also learned a great deal about how to apply critical thinking to AG operations from awesome leaders like CW4 (ret.) Rick Samson, MG (ret.) Roderick Leon Guerrero, CW5 (ret.) Michael Demers, CW5 (ret.) Troy Skaggs, CW5 Lou Burge, Col. John Javellana, and a host of talented peers and subordinates—too many to mention. My faith and trust in God continue to keep me through good and bad seasons—evidence that an ordinary person like me can do extraordinary things in Him. Finally, thanks to my Dad, Larry Aguon, who passed away a few years ago. He instilled a work-hard ethic in me that has contributed to success in all areas of my life. If there was a dedication to this honor, it would be bestowed to him. Love you Dad! (Guam National Guard Public Affairs)

Chief Warrant Officer 4 Bernard Aguon, center, with Jennifer Aguon and family, attends the National Adjutant General Ball in Columbia, South Carolina, last June 15, 2023. (Courtesy Photo)