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WILKES-BARRE — Gov. Josh Shapiro on Monday said Major General Mark Schindler has spent his career serving and protecting the Commonwealth and our nation.
“He has led the Pennsylvania National Guard and Department of Military and Veteran Affairs with extraordinary honor and integrity,” Shapiro said. “On behalf of a grateful Commonwealth, I want to thank General Schindler for his service, and I wish him and his family all the best during a well-deserved retirement.”
Schindler, Pennsylvania’s Adjutant General and head of the Pennsylvania Department of Military and Veterans Affairs (DMVA), announced his retirement on Monday after nearly four decades of service with the Pennsylvania National Guard.
General Schindler was nominated to continue to serve as the 54th Adjutant General of Pennsylvania and was confirmed by the Senate of Pennsylvania on April 26, 2023.
As the head of the PA National Guard and DMVA, Schindler oversaw a combined state and federal budget of more than $966 million at Fort Indiantown Gap, Annville.
He is responsible for the command and control of over 18,000 Army and Air National Guard members — the 3rd largest National Guard in the nation — and a complement of 2,500 Commonwealth employees; care of residential Cadets at the Keystone State ChalleNGe Academy; and six state-owned veterans homes and programs for Pennsylvania’s more than 700,000 veterans.
“It has been a tremendous honor to serve as Pennsylvania’s Adjutant General,” Schindler said. “I am grateful to Gov. Shapiro and his administration for their unwavering support of the Pennsylvania National Guard and Pennsylvania’s more than 700,000 veterans. I am honored to have served shoulder-to-shoulder with soldiers and airmen who will continue to be ‘Always Ready, Always There, Always on Mission,’ serving the people of Pennsylvania and our nation.”
Schindler will be retiring on Oct. 1, and the Governor plans to nominate a new Adjutant General after that date.
Under Schindler’s leadership, DMVA has made great strides in serving Pennsylvania service members, veterans and their families — from making improvements to veterans homes to investing in workforce training programs for veterans and military families.
In May 2023, DMVA broke ground on a new $97 million, 200-bed long-term care building for veterans in need of skilled nursing and memory care at the Hollidaysburg Veterans’ Home (HVH) campus in Duncansville, Blair County.
Schindler was also instrumental in securing $1.4 million for a new walk-in outreach center for veterans in the 2024-25 state budget. The center will create a one-stop shop outside of the secure perimeter of FortIndiantown Gap to make it easier for Pennsylvanians who have served our nation to receive the benefits and help they have earned.
And last year, thanks to the work of Schindler and his team, DMVA helped to secure nearly a billion dollars in total claims to Pennsylvania veterans for benefits they earned during their service — an 18% increase from the previous year.
Prior to his appointment as Adjutant General, Schindler served as Assistant Adjutant General, PA Army National Guard; Chief of Staff, PA National Guard; and served in a variety of command and staff positions within the Pennsylvania Army National Guard.
Schindler deployed as commander of the 55th Military Engagement Team in Jordan during combat operations in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in 2012-2013.
Schindler was born in Buffalo, New York. He received a two-year ROTC scholarship from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania and was commissioned in 1987, earning a bachelor’s degree in communications. He attended Clarion University of Pennsylvania earning a master’s degree in communications in 1989, and a master’s degree in strategic studies from the U.S. Army War College in 2011.
His military education included the Signal Corps Officer Basic and Advanced Course; U.S. Army War College; Harvard University– Leadership in Homeland Security Course; Dual-Status Commander Course; and the Senior Leadership Course, Baltic Defense College.
Schindler and his wife, Colette, have two adult children, David and Beth Rose.
Reach Bill O’Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.