Spc. Dakota Michel of the Kentucky National Guard is named 2021 National Guard Region III Runner-Up Soldier of the Year. The National Guard's 2021 Region III Best Warrior Competition was held at the Alabama National Guard's Fort McClellan Training Center and featured two Soldiers each from 10 states/territories in the southeast U.S. The top NCO (Staff Sgt. Timothy Herter, ALNG) and top lower enlisted Soldier (Sgt. William Lukens, TNNG) will go on to compete in the national-level competition this summer. Soldiers came from Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, and the Virgin Islands to test their mental and physical endurance, their military knowledge and Soldier skills, their weapons proficiency, and their resilience under stress.