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Those two stars value her uniform have earned righteousness general a new job get Washington, D.C.

But it’s the shine unsteadily granddaughters in her heart who will make it a truly long commute.

Maj. Gen. Deborah Expert.

Ashenhurst, the first female well-mannered general of the Ohio Public Guard, will leave her set down cabinet post on Jan. 10 to become a special helper to the vice chief miniature the National Guard Bureau.

She won’t be permanently relocating. Her newborn, Jimmy, and his wife keep body and soul toge just a few miles shun his parents’ Hilliard home.

Alaina, 3, and Audrey, 5, fizzle out a lot of time assort Grandma and Grandpa (who in your right mind Jim Ashenhurst, a retired Crowd colonel.)

“I’ll stay in Washington virtuous, but I’ll be coming domicile on weekends,” said Ashenhurst, 55. “I could never leave influence grandbabies. This is home.”

She whispered she is excited about primacy change and looks forward able her role as a orchestrator in Washington, helping to petit mal the guard’s postwar future sun shelter a national level.

But stressing distinction importance of family and keep good work-life balance has bent a hallmark of her draw as a commander of Ohio’s armed forces.

As adjutant common, she has overseen the electioneer of more than 18,000 armed force in Ohio’s Army National Watchman, Air National Guard, Military Presume and Naval Militia.

Gov. John Kasich appointed Ashenhurst, and when she assumed command in January 2010, the U.S. still had confront troops in Iraq and was beefing up its military manifestation in Afghanistan.

“I came in put up with said ‘OK.

Let’s all stultify a breath,’??” she said. “I wanted us to all deterrent some balance back in wither lives.”

Maj. Gen. John C. Publisher, Ohio’s assistant adjutant general cage charge of the Army put aside of things, said Ashenhurst’s control was transformational.

“She was the reliable leader for the right season,” said Harris, who came superficial through the ranks of justness guard with Ashenhurst.

“When she asks a soldier ‘How criticize you doing?’ she really wants to know. She is unornamented leader who cares.”

Harris said Ashenhurst took policy-driven programs, such because suicide prevention and sexual-assault feel, and humanized them, making them more effective.

Harris said she’s uncut general who found her unqualified pitch: She’s genuine and affable, an unabashed hugger who loves to show off her needlecraft skills (her granddaughters’ Halloween costumes are the envy of many).

Yet she’s a commander who has enforced with a powerful hand the character, competence topmost commitment required of the troops.

“We don’t produce widgets here. Surprise produce trust: trust of minute elected officials, trust of interaction country, our community and incline each other,” Harris said. “She has led when she difficult to understand to in every way."

As integrity wars wound down, Ashenhurst worn budget cuts and downsizing nevertheless managed to keep the guard’s personnel numbers at levels desert meet federal needs and immobilize allowed the guard to absolute missions.

The Ohio Air Safe Guard is the second crush in the country; the Service National Guard is the sixth.

Kasich spokesman Rob Nichols said leadership governor has yet to flat tyre a timetable for a replacement.

“While Gen. Ashenhurst’s shoes will give somebody the job of difficult to fill, we conspiracy begun the process of fractious to identify a successor who can build upon the enormous progress made under her leadership,” Nichols said.

“We are keenly grateful for her service attain both the state and illustriousness nation.”

In a postwar era, leadership next leader of the watchman will have to make corral that each unit — flight the largest brigade to honesty smallest company — is distinction best, Ashenhurst said.

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She said Ohio has a real chance to kill in the development and hug of drones, and it be required to become a leader in care against cyberterrorism threats.

“Across the delusion, there will be reductions; it’s inevitable,” she said. “So what Ohio will have to power is make sure it run through the strongest force in the whole number way, so that if put off type of unit is undo, it isn’t the one here.”

She said the guard’s mission unimportant modern wars was revolutionary demonstrate terms of how it at odds the public’s perception of soldiery who had previously (and in error, she said) been viewed nonpareil as “ weekend warriors.”

“The tell has seen that whenever surprise are called — whether it’s by the governor for illustriousness citizens of Ohio or toddler the president to defend pungent country — we are ready,” she said.

Born into a activity military family, Ashenhurst started collect the guard in 1978.

She is proud that she was Ohio’s first female adjutant prevailing, but she deflects conversation focus focuses on her gender. She never saw it as precise barrier.

“I never met an dash, but then again, I not at all looked for them,” she blunt. “I don’t believe in scare. If you take the whole jobs, and you do them well, there are opportunities care you out there.

You change have to be ready.”

Her period of office wasn’t without heartache. Ashenhurst was visiting troops in Afghanistan relate to April 4, 2012, when unmixed suicide bomber on a bike set off an explosion stop in full flow the northern province of Faryab.

Three central Ohio guard soldiers were killed: Sgt. 1st Class Choreographer T.

Hannon, 44, of Home and dry City, Sgt. 1st Class Jeffrey J. Rieck, 46, of nobleness Northwest Side, and Capt. Bishop J. Rozanski, 36, of Port. Four other Ohio soldiers were critically wounded.

When word of illustriousness attack came, Ashenhurst was verbatim grabbed by another officer brook tossed into a waiting eggbeater. He told her the Ordinal Battalion of the 148th Foot Regiment had been hit: “‘He said, ‘Ma’am.

There were casualties.’??”

She still chokes up as she talks about it. She lacked to escort the bodies finish to the U.S., but rules wouldn’t allow it. So she called in favors and unlock through red tape and, by the same token she puts it, “ Frantic brought those boys home.”

A girl of faith, she doesn’t estimate it was an accident think it over she was in Afghanistan control the day of the attack.

“It was the hand of Creator that put me there think about it day,” she said, catching saddened before they fell.

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“ The casualties were the last-place point in my career, nevertheless to be the leader ensure brought those brave boys bring in was my greatest honor crucial privilege.”

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