Hawaii Army National Guard The Hawaii Army National Guard is a component of the United States Army and the United States National Guard . Nationwide , the Army National Guard comprises approximately one half of the US Army ' s available combat forces and approximately one third of its support organization . National coordination of various state National Guard units are maintained through the National Guard Bureau . Hawaii Army National Guard units are trained and equipped as part of the United States Army . It uses the same ranks and insignia as the U . S . Army , and National Guardsmen are eligible to receive all United States military awards . The Hawaii Guard also bestows a number of state awards for local services rendered in or to the state of Hawaii . Units . 29th Infantry Brigade ( United States ) - Kalaeloa , Hawaii 103rd Troop Command - Waiawa , Pearl City , Oahu , Hawaii 298th Regiment Multifunctional , Regional Training Institute - Waimanalo , Oahu , Hawaii Duties . National Guard units can be mobilized at any time by presidential order to supplement regular armed forces , and upon declaration of a state of emergency by the governor of the state in which they serve . Unlike Army Reserve members , National Guard members cannot be mobilized individually ( except through voluntary transfers and Temporary DutY Assignments TDY ) , but only as part of their respective unit s . However , there has been a significant amount of individual activations to support military operations ( 2001 - ? ) ; the legality of this policy is a major issue within the National Guard . Active Duty Callups . For much of the final decades of the twentieth century , National Guard personnel typically served " One weekend a month , two weeks a year " , with a portion working for the Guard in a full - time capacity . The current forces formation plans of the US Army call for the typical National Guard unit ( or National Guardsman ) to serve one year of active duty for every three years of service . More specifically , current Department of Defense policy is that no Guardsman will be involuntarily activated for a total of more than 24 months ( cumulative ) in one six year enlistment period ( this policy is due to change 1 August 2007 , the new policy states that soldiers will be given 24 months between deployments of no more than 24 months , individual states have differing policies ) . History . Kingdom . The earliest forerunner of the Hawaii Army National Guard was the Honolulu Rifles a militia formed in 1854 . In 1887 it was certified as a paramilitary . Republic . On January 27 , 1893 the National Guard of Hawaii was formed largely adopting men from the Honolulu Rifles . The first action as a national guard was during the Leper War an indecisive victory . Territory . On August 12 , 1898 National Guard of Hawaii was converted into the Hawaii Territorial Guard . In 1938 members of the Guard unit in Hilo aided striking workers against government authorities during the protest that became known as the Hilo Massacre . The Territorial Guard was disbanded in 1942 and the Hawaii Army National Guard was formed . Many feel it was a conspiracy to purge the guard of Japanese Americans . Although hundreds of Japanese - Americans were forced to leave the Guard , 1 , 300 were retained . The first man to join the Hawaii Army National Guard was James Mitose .