U.S. Air Force Col. Yvonne L. Mays, Assistant Adjutant General – Air, New Jersey Air National Guard, stands for a portrait at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey., Dec. 27, 2023. (New Jersey National Guard photo by Mark C. Olsen)

LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J. — On July 1, Col. Yvonne L. Mays, a Steubenville native, became the acting adjutant general of the New Jersey National Guard and acting commissioner of the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs.

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy nominated Mays to that position June 27, following the promotion of the previous adjutant general, Maj. Gen. Dr. Lisa J. Hou, who is now serving as director of the Office of the Joint Surgeon General at the National Guard Bureau.

During her nine years of active duty in the Air Force, Mays supported various operations, including Operation Just Cause, and deployed in support of Operation Desert Storm. She earned her commission in 1999 from the Palmetto Military Academy at South Carolina’s Fort Jackson.

Beginning her National Guard career in 1999, Mays has served in numerous roles, and support operations Noble Eagle and Enduring Freedom, following the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.

Before being selected by the governor in June, Mays was the deputy adjutant general, acting as the principal adviser to the New Jersey adjutant general and military and veterans affairs department commissioner on matters ranging from military readiness to financial management.

Approved by the U.S. Senate on July 31 for promotion to brigadier general, Mays is expected to appear in a hearing before the recently reconvened New Jersey Senate, which will vote to confirm her promotion and appointment. Pending that last step, Mays would become the first Black woman confirmed to lead the New Jersey National Guard in the state’s history.

“This is a time of transformation for the New Jersey National Guard and the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, and we are ready to meet the challenge,” Mays stated in a release from the New Jersey governor’s office. “Together, we will continue the critical work of defending our state and nation and supporting Garden State heroes through robust state-delivered veterans benefits, programs and services.”

One of 54 adjutant generals across the U.S.’s 54 states and territories — excluding Washington D.C. — Mays reports to the New Jersey governor, who can activate the state’s National Guard forces for domestic missions or to support federal missions requested by the U.S. president. She is responsible for equipping, training and directing personnel in the state guard’s Army and Air components, which boast about 6,400 and 2,000 personnel respectively.

Mays said Sept. 27 that she’s proud to be charged with such a consequential responsibility. Tracing her roots back to humble beginnings in the Ohio Valley, Mays said she “never dreamed in a million years” that she’d be given this leadership opportunity.

Born Yvonne Lynn Allen to Freddie and Frankie Allen, Mays grew up on Spring Avenue in Steubenville, near the former Ohio Valley Hospital, now Trinity Medical Center East. Her father worked in the steel mill, and her mother worked different jobs — primarily domestic work — to help support the family.

Mays attended Steubenville High School and graduated in 1983, and in spite of her parents’ hard work, she knew they couldn’t afford to send her through college without taking out loans. Instead, Mays decided to enlist in the military, having been encouraged by her father, who was an Army veteran, and her mother, who received her GED diploma later in life and always stressed the military as a good way to get an education.

“My mother never served in the military, but she always thought that the military was a good way to provide a good life for yourself and to be educated and become a responsible adult,” Mays said.

Enlisting in the Air Force, Mays served on active duty for nine years. During that time, she had gotten married and had three children. When her youngest daughter was still a newborn, Operation Desert Storm kicked off, and within 24 hours, Mays was sent overseas to Spain. Thankfully, Mays said, her parents were able to take care of the kids, but when she returned, she realized her career wasn’t conducive to family life.

Mays earned her master’s degree in human resources and management from Webster University through the G.I. Bill in 1997. She remained in the reserves for six years in South Carolina and got remarried, but when her husband got orders to come to New Jersey, she joined the Army National Guard.

Commissioned as an officer, Mays moved to New Jersey and joined the Air National Guard, taking her first job as the 177th Fighter Wing’s director of personnel. Mays has been based in New Jersey ever since, serving in a number of positions, including as the bilateral affairs officer in Albania, the New Jersey National Guard’s partner nation for training and deployment.

Deputy adjutant general since April 2022, Mays said she believes her honesty and direct approach to problem solving is what led her predecessor, Hou, to recommend her to the governor for the adjutant general appointment.

In a release, Murphy said of Mays: “(Her) depth of experience over 40 years in service to our state and nation, and her firsthand knowledge of the day-to-day operations of the New Jersey National Guard and the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, make her an exceptional candidate for this position. I am confident that she will continue to support our efforts to serve our Garden State heroes.”

Acknowledging the gravity of her position, Mays said her goal is to be “the best steward of all that we’re charged and entrusted with in supporting our communities.”

Mays said she hopes to ensure all soldiers and airmen under her control are trained and proficient in their craft and that they have access to the equipment and weapons systems they need to execute their missions, state and federal. Mays also hopes to prioritize recruitment — a challenge that every service branch is facing, she said.

Furthermore, as the overseer of state veteran programs, Mays hopes to improve New Jersey’s veterans services, which employ another 2,500 individuals. The department of military and veterans affairs operates three veteran memorial homes and two transitional homes for veterans who may be facing homelessness or life difficulties. Two of the memorial homes are finishing design stages to add single rooms for married couples, with construction expected to begin in the next year or so.

“We have made great strides in transforming (our three memorial homes),” Mays said, adding, “I put them against any private home anywhere.”

Mays said she’ll be proud to have her grandchildren and children — including her daughter, who serves in the Army National Guard — present to see her appointment hearing. Her only regret is that her late parents, who were married for 65 years, will not be present, as well as her son, who died in 2011.

“Three of the people who I love the most are not here to enjoy and celebrate this with me,” Mays said. “I’m thankful for all that I have and the people I do have in my life, but it’s times like this that I miss them terribly.”

Mays still has an aunt, cousins and friends who live in Steubenville, a place with unmatched food and outstanding people, she said.

“I will always, always come back to Steubenville,” Mays said. “It’s home. It’s changed quite a bit these days, but it’s home.”