Old faces, new roles in
isle National Guard

The state Defense Department deputy
will get his chance to be an Army general

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By Gregg K. Kakesako
gkakesako@starbulletin.com

The Hawaii Army National Guard has reshuffled major leadership positions, and now a University of Hawaii animal scientist professor is taking over as the head of its main combat unit, the 29th Infantry Brigade (Separate).

Brig. Gen. James R. Carpenter, a Vietnam War veteran, will assume command of the nearly 2,500-member brigade on Nov. 1, relieving Brig. Gen. Glen I. Sakagawa, who was named commander on Jan. 7, 2000, just 22 months before.

Sakagawa, also a Vietnam War veteran, in civilian life is senior manager for the U.S. Postal Service. He joined the Hawaii Army National Guard in 1971 after serving in Vietnam with the 101st Airborne Division in 1966. Sakagawa, 53, will leave the Hawaii Army National Guard and join the Army Reserve's individual ready reserve program.

Maj. Charles Anthony, Hawaii National Guard spokesman, said Sakagawa's departure gives Clarence Agena, currently deputy in the state Department of Defense, a chance to become an Army brigadier general.

Agena, who served with the 25th Infantry Division in Vietnam, will replace Carpenter as head of the Hawaii Army National Guard. Agena, 57, will continue to serve as the department's deputy.

Carpenter, 57, was named as the commanding general of the 3,500-member Hawaii Army National Guard in January 2000. He served with an armor unit in Vietnam in 1971 and joined the Hawaii Army National Guard in 1977 after tours with the Army Reserve in New York.

He works full time as an associate animal scientist at the University of Hawaii's department of animal science, tropical agriculture and human resources. Carpenter attended the University of Vermont, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in agriculture in 1967. He went on to earn a master's degree in animal science from UH in 1969 and a doctorate in animal nutrition from Cornell University in 1976.

Agena graduated from Lahainaluna High School in Maui and attended Oregon State University. He transferred to UH, where he earned a mathematics degree, and was commissioned a second lieutenant through the ROTC program in 1967.