More commonly referred to as a “unit crest” or a DUI, the Distinctive Unit Insignia worn today by Virgin Islands Army National Guard (ARNG) personnel serving in the Virgin National Guard’s Joint Force Headquarters (HQ) was first approved for HQ and HQ Detachment and non-color bearing units of the Virgin Islands ARNG on 19 March 1974. It was subsequently redesignated for the HQ, Territorial Area Command, Virgin ARNG with an effective date of 1 April 1983. Just under twenty years later, it was given its current designation for the Virgin Islands ARNG Element, Joint Force HQ, Virgin Islands National Guard with an effective date of 1 October 2003, as it was concurrently amended to update the description.
The eye-catching design of this DUI reflects the beauty of the islands by incorporating symbolism into the image of a yellow cedar, official plant and flower of the Territory, bearing three stems each holding seven petals. The three stems allude to the Territory’s three primary islands—St. Thomas, St. Martin, and St. John—while the seven petals on each stem alludes to the seven national flags that the islands have been under.
An embattled triangle containing the cedar is a familiar image for a fort, symbolizing the protection that the Virgin ARNG offers the islands, and six battlements on each of the three sides represent the first digit of the activated originally activated ARNG units’ numeric designations (661st, 662nd, 666th).
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