Surrounded by friends, family, and fellow Soldiers, Amanda Lindsay of Springfield was promoted to Chief Warrant Officer 5 during a ceremony at the Illinois Military Academy in Springfield Jan. 3.

Lindsay, who was selected the Senior Supply Services Officer for the Illinois Army National Guard in December 2023, has served in the U.S. Army and the Illinois National Guard for the past 33 years, enlisting in 1991 as a supply Soldier. She has deployed twice during her career, including a January 2024 deployment with the 34th Infantry Division Sustainment Brigade.

Lindsay was described as a bulldog, with a gruff exterior to ensure things are done to standard but with a soft interior when it comes to the developing, teaching, and coaching Soldiers.

“This organization is a better place because of what you’ve done for it,” said Chief Warrant Officer 5 Thomas Black, the Command Chief Warrant Officer, Illinois Army National Guard. “Your talents are unmatched nationwide. I heard it overseas when we visited with the unit overseas and I’ve heard it from Command Chief Warrant Officers from other states. I know I would never be standing here without your support.”

After spending four years on active duty, Lindsay transferred to the Illinois National Guard in 1996 and became a federal technician in 1997. In 2006, she graduated from Warrant Officer Candidate School.

Throughout her years of service, Lindsay has progressed through key positions, including supply support activity and accountable officer for Company A, 634th Brigade Support Battalion; property accounting technician, Joint Force Headquarters; material management officer-in-charge, 34th Infantry Division Sustainment Brigade; supply systems technician, JFHQ; supply support activity and accountable officer, U.S. Property and Finance Office; and command maintenance discipline coordinator.

“The bulldog analogy is spot on,” said Brig. Gen. Lenny Williams, Assistant Adjutant General – Army and Commander of the Illinois Army National Guard. “You uphold the standards and are always teaching us as officers.”

Williams said with only nine chief warrant officers five in the Illinois Army National Guard, it is very difficult to get promoted to the Warrant Officers Corps’ top rank.

“This promotion is a testament to who you are and who you’ve been,” Williams said. “As someone who develops, teaches, and coaches Soldiers, find the next you. Look to the chief warrant officers threes and fours and develop the next chief warrant officer five.”

Lindsay said promotions aren’t for the Soldiers’ receiving them, but rather for their families, and for the Soldiers they serve with.

“When the Soldiers I was deployed with found out I was selected for promotion, their eyes lit up with excitement,” Lindsay said. “So, this promotion is for those E-4s and E-5s and also for my family who has sacrificed everything to support me to this point. There have been missed birthdays and missed holidays, but they have supported me 100 percent.”

Lindsay said she’s been around the military for a long time, so many of the people who made her who she is have since retired.

“The Soldiers made me who I am,” she said. “I enjoy working with Soldiers. I am blessed to be here today.”