Albany businessman retires after 41 years of military service

ALBANY — Brigadier General Lan Skalla retired from the Georgia department of Defense, Georgia State Defense Force on Jan. 6 after more than 38 years of continuous GSDF service. During his retirement ceremony, he was promoted from the rank of colonel to the rank of brigadier general.

Prior to his time in the GSDF, Skalla served three years in the U.S. Air Force.

“I served three years in the Air Force, from 1969-1972, including three months of service in Vietnam,” Skalla, a semi-retired businessman, said Thursday. “I got out when my dad died and I had to come home and run the family business.

“On the urging of a friend, I got involved with the State Defense Force in 1985 and served until my retirement on Saturday.”

The GSDF is Georgia’s State Guard. The GSDF is one of three components of the Georgia Department of Defense, along with the Georgia Air National Guard and Georgia Army National Guard.

While in the GSDF, Skalla served in both battalion and brigade units as Operations Officer, Executive Officer, and Commander. In his most recent positions, he was the Operations Officer for four GSDF Commanding Generals and assistant to the GSDF Deputy Commanding General.

“Not as many people know about the State Defense Force; it’s an all-volunteer domestic operation force,” he said. “We participate in non-emergency events like crowd control at parades and serving as color guards. But with emergencies like (Hurricane) Michael, the floods here in ‘94 and ‘98, the G8 Summit, the wildfires in Waycross, winter storms and Hurricanes Dorian, Irma and Matthew, COVID 19 response, and search and rescue missions, the State Defense Force has been on the ground.

“As a matter of fact, the State Defense Force actually is on the scene of emergencies before the National Guard sometimes because, since we are all volunteers, we don’t have to wait for federal intervention to deploy. Sometimes, we can be on the ground before an expected event occurs.”

Skalla served under nine different GSDF Commanding Generals and eight different Georgia Adjutant Generals.

Maj. Gen. Thomas M. Carden Jr., the Adjutant General of Georgia, and BG Dennis Watts, the Commanding General of the GSDF, presided over Skalla’s retirement ceremony, held at GSDF headquarters in Ellenwood. Soldiers presented Skalla an officer’s sabre and plaque. Skalla also received the Georgia Distinctive Service Medal, the Georgia DoD’s highest military service award, and a challenge coin from Carden.

“I still do some consulting work with the former family business (Sasco Chemical Group, which the family sold and now operates as Polymer Solutions Group, although most of the business’s clients still refer to the company as Sasco), and I have my own business: RCL Environmental, which I’ve owned since 1979,” Skalla said. “But I’m 73 now, and it’s just gotten too much to drive up to Ellenwood (near Atlanta) each month for training.

“I’ll stay active, but I’ll have a little more free time. Of course, my wife Dana’s list is growing for things she wants me to do in that free time.”

Attending Skalla’s retirement ceremony were his wife and his son, Clayton. Dana Skalla was presented a bouquet of flowers, a certificate and a challenge coin from Carden for her commitment as a serviceman’s spouse. Clayton Skalla was mentioned for his assistance to the Georgia National Guard during the flood of 1998, when he was only 15 years old.

Special Photo Courtesy of Lan SkallaSpecial Photo Courtesy of Lan Skalla

Georgia State Defense Force Photo: Chief Warrant Officer 2 Alexander Davidson