Brig. Gen. Michael Venerdi will be installed as the 38th Kansas adjutant general in a Transfer of Authority ceremony Saturday, April 1, 2 p.m. on the south steps of the Kansas Statehouse. The ceremony will include the traditional exchange of the command flag and a cannon salute.
“As the daughter of a career military officer, I understand the sacrifices made by Major General Weishaar and his family throughout his military career, and I thank him for his dedication and service to Kansas,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “I appreciate Brigadier General Michael Venerdi’s commitment to our state and to the nation as he takes on the duties of Adjutant General.”
“It is a great honor to be chosen by Governor Kelly for duties as the adjutant general,” said Venerdi. “I look forward to the opportunity to serve our state and nation alongside the talented individuals and teams who make up the Kansas Adjutant General’s Department.”
Venerdi succeeds Maj. Gen. David Weishaar, who is retiring.
“Serving as the adjutant general for the state of Kansas has been the highlight of my career,” said Weishaar. “I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to have served the citizens of Kansas and the thousands of Soldiers, Airmen, and civilians who make up the Adjutant General’s Department. Any success I’ve had over the past 42 years is because of the teams I’ve been privileged to be a part of.
“Over the past three years, the agency endured unprecedented taskings and was able to respond to them in remarkable fashion—a true testament to the men and women that comprise the agency.”
Immediately after the transfer of authority, Weishaar will be honored in a retirement ceremony on the south steps. Following both ceremonies, a reception will be held on the second floor of the rotunda to honor both generals.
Brig. Gen. Michael T. Venerdi
Brig. Gen. Michael T. Venerdi is currently the director of the Joint Staff for the Kansas National Guard, Joint Forces Headquarters. He serves as advisor and assistant to the Kansas adjutant general. In this role, he is responsible for programs, plans and policies directing and coordinating the efforts of 7,000 Army, Air, and civilian members of the Kansas National Guard.
Venerdi is a 1991 graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy. He served over 10 years on active duty as a supply officer and KC-135R/T instructor and evaluator pilot. He joined the U.S. Air Force Reserve in 2001, then transitioned into the Kansas Air National Guard and later became an intelligence officer.
He has held command, staff and supervisory positions including wing, group, and squadron commander; Chief, Operations Support Division; and Command Center Director, North American Aerospace Defense Command. He has deployed multiple times to Southern and Central Command in support of myriad operations. Prior to his current position, he served as Commander, 184th Wing, McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas.
His military education includes Squadron Officer School, Air Command and Staff College, Air War College, Joint and Combined Warfighting School, Joint Task Force Commanders Course, and Dual Status Commanders Course.
His military awards and decoration include the Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster, Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters, Air Medal with two oak leaf clusters, Aerial Achievement Medal, and the Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster.
Maj. Gen. David A. Weishaar
Maj. Gen. David A. Weishaar became the adjutant general on April 1, 2020.
As the adjutant general, Weishaar oversaw the activities of the Adjutant General’s Department. This includes providing personnel administration and training guidance for more than 7,000 Soldiers and Airmen in the Kansas Army and Air National Guard. As the director of Kansas Emergency Management, he guided a small professional core of personnel that prepare for and respond to disasters. In addition to the part-time Soldiers and Airmen, the department includes about 2,300 full-time state and federal employees. Additionally, 105 county emergency managers and their staff receive guidance and training through the department.
The adjutant general is also the governor’s Kansas Homeland Security Advisor, where he works to ensure security in the state is a top priority. For budgetary and administrative purposes, he is responsible for the Civil Air Patrol.
Weishaar joined the Air Force in 1981 as an aircraft maintenance specialist. In 1985, he enlisted in the Kansas Air National Guard, holding various positions in the aircraft maintenance arena, rising from the lowest enlisted rank of airman basic to senior master sergeant. In 1996, he was commissioned a second lieutenant after graduating as a Distinguished Graduate from the Air National Guard’s Academy of Military Science in Knoxville, Tennessee.
As an officer, Weishaar held several positions, including commander of the 184th Communications Flight, commander of the 127th Command and Control Squadron, commander of the 299th Network Operations Security Squadron, commander of the 184th Intelligence Wing’s Mission Support Group, and Wing Commander of the 184th Intelligence Wing. In May 2018, he was selected as the assistant adjutant general – Air, Kansas Air National Guard. In July 2019 he became the director of the Joint Staff, Kansas National Guard.
Weishaar has a bachelor’s degree in Human Resources Management from Friends University. He is a graduate of Air Command and Staff College, Air War College, Joint Combined Warfighter School, and numerous other civilian and military courses.
His awards include the Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster, the Meritorious Service Medal with six oak leaf clusters, the Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster, the Air Force Achievement Medal with three oak leaf clusters, the Global War of Terrorism Medal, and the Kansas National Guard Meritorious Service Ribbon with oak leaf cluster.
