Hara to retire as adjutant general for Hawaii

Maj. Gen. Kenneth Hara, adjutant general for the state of Hawaii, who serves as commander of the Hawaii National Guard and director of the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, will resign from his post on Oct. 1 and retire from the military on Nov. 1, bringing to an end a distinguished 40-year career in the military.

“Throughout his entire career, Maj. Gen. Hara led by example, providing a steady hand through some of the most challenging times in the history of our state and nation,” Gov. Josh Green said in a statement released on Friday. “I can say with confidence that the state of Hawaii is better because of Maj. Gen. Hara’s dedicated service, commitment, and sacrifices. I wish him all the best in retirement.”

Green has selected Brig. Gen. Stephen Logan to replace Hara. Logan currently serves as deputy adjutant general for Hawaii and commander of the Hawaii Army National Guard. 

“He is a key component of the Hawaii National Guard’s success and his appointment as Adjutant General marks another historic milestone in a storied military career,” Green said of Logan. 

As adjutant general, Logan will serve as the commander of the Hawaii National Guard and director of the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency. He will be responsible for daily operations and oversee approximately 5,600 Army and Air National Guard service members which includes approximately 2,100 full-time federal and state employees. Brig. Gen. Logan’s appointment is pending state Senate confirmation.

The Hawaii Department of Defense will conduct an official change of responsibility ceremony on Oct. 1.

“I am grateful and proud to have served with the extraordinary members of the state of Hawaii, Department of Defense, who accomplished every assigned state and federal mission during extremely challenging times,” Hara said. “And I have full faith and confidence in Brig. Gen. Steve Logan and know that he will successfully lead the department into the future.”

Hara, served on combat deployments to Baghdad, Iraq; Camp Arifjan, Kuwait; and Kandahar, Afghanistan. He was appointed adjutant general in Dec. 2019.

Hara served as the state’s overall incident commander from 2020 to 2023 during the COVID-19 pandemic response. He again served as the state’s incident commander for the Maui wildfire response.

Logan, a combat veteran who served in Afghanistan, has been the deputy adjutant general since Dec. 2019 and commander of the Hawaii Army National Guard since Oct. 2021. He most recently served as the dual status commander of the Hawaii National Guard’s Joint Task Force 50, which was activated in response to the 2023 Maui wildfire disaster.

“I’m truly honored and humbled to be selected as the adjutant general for the state of Hawaii and extremely proud to be a member of Gov. Green’s Cabinet,” Logan said. “I also want to thank the dedicated efforts of the many great leaders who’ve held this post before me, most notably Maj. Gen. Hara for his decisive leadership through these challenging times.”

Logan grew up on Oahu and enlisted as an infantry soldier in the Hawaii Army National Guard during his senior year in high school. He commissioned through the Guard’s Officer Candidate School and later attended the U.S. Army’s Initial Entry Rotary Wing Training Course. He flew both rotary and fixed-wing aircraft for almost 30 years and has served in the military for more than 40 years.

Prior to being selected as the State Army Aviation Officer, Logan was a traditional National Guard soldier holding positions in the Honolulu Police Department. He retired as a metropolitan police lieutenant in 2004.