Brig. Gen. William L. Enyart, a Belleville attorney, assumed command of the Illinois National Guard on Sept. 8 during a Springfield ceremony at which he was promoted to the rank of major general.

A member of the ISBA Committee on Military Affairs, Enyart had been appointed the 37th adjutant general of Illinois on Aug. 31 by Governor Blagojevich. He succeeds Maj. Gen. Randal E. Thomas, who retired last month.

A veteran of more than 30 years of military service, Enyart was in the Air Force before joining the National Guard in 1982. He has served in the guard's Judge Advocate General Corps and has held other staff positions, including deputy commending general.

He now commands more than 13,000 of the state's military personnel, including 8,500 Army National Guard soldiers who have been called to duty in the war on terrorism. More than half of the Air National Guard members also have been mobilized.

As adjutant general, he is director of the Illinois Department of Military Affairs and the governor's principal adviser on military matters and functions.

A 1979 graduate of the Southern Illinois University School of Law, Enyart is a partner in the Social Security disability law firm of Enyart & Peebles. He is married to 20th Circuit Judge Annette A. Eckert.