FAIRBANKS — Even on one of the most serious days of his life, Tony Shumate was all laughs.

Standing at the door greeting friends, co-workers and fellow soldiers as they filed into Fairbanks City Hall chambers for his formal retirement from the Alaska Army National Guard on Friday, Shumate cracked jokes and yukked it up.

“Oh my God! Oh my God!” Shumate said to Lt. Col. Simon Brown, who he has known and served with for more than 20 years. “Who let you out?”

The smile never left Shumate’s face as he shook hands, exchanged hugs and posed for pictures.

“Oh man,” Shumate exclaimed when Russ Wood, a fellow guardsman who recently retired, walked in. “Who’s this? Hey grandpa.”

People who know him best, both in the Alaska Army National Guard and at city hall, would have expected nothing less from the effervescent Shumate. That’s just the way he is, which is an asset that made him one of the top commanders in the Alaska Guard during the past 20 years.

“He’s a soldier’s soldier,” is how Brig. Gen. Randy Banez, head of the Alaska Army National Guard, described Shumate on Friday during a noon retirement ceremony in city hall chambers.

Shumate, who serves as the city’s human resources and purchasing manager, officially retired from the Guard on July 31, ending a 30-year military career that included 19 years in the Guard and 11 of active duty.

Shumate, 52, was commander of the newly formed 38th Troop Command, one of two Alaska National Guard brigades in Alaska. The brigade has more than 1,400 soldiers and was created last year.

There are approximately 3,800 Alaska National Guardsmen in Alaska, of which about 1,850 are in the Alaska Army National Guard.

Shumate is one of approximately 765 guardsmen in the Fairbanks area, about 100 of whom are in the Alaska Army National Guard. He is one of 430 traditional soldiers and airmen who train and serve with the Guard on a part-time basis, committing one weekend per month and two weeks per year to Guard training.

Juggling his obligations with the Guard and his work at city hall was “kind of difficult at times,” but Shumate said the support he received from the city, co-workers and his family made it possible.

Fairbanks Mayor Terry Strle, who is vacationing in Mexico, congratulated Shumate in a video message.

Banez, who has known him for 21 years, was on hand to present Shumate with several honors, including a federal Legion of Merit medal, Alaska Legion of Merit medal, Certificate of Retirement and Certificate of Service.

Shumate held key staff and leadership positions during his 19 years in the Guard and will be hard to replace, Banez said.

Shumate, who attended The Citadel and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business administration in 1979, completed ROTC and was commissioned for active duty in 1979 as a second lieutenant, field artillery. He ended his 11-year active duty career as a test officer for the U.S. Army Cold Regions Test Center at Fort Greely in Delta Junction in 1990 and joined the Alaska Army National Guard six months later.

It was “an honor and a privilege” to serve in the Alaska Army National Guard, Shumate said. His fellow guardsmen are “like a family.”

“I was there working with a bunch of professionals doing the things I needed to do to be successful, and they made it possible,” Shumate said.

Soldiers who served under him said Shumate was dedicated, passionate and considerate.

“He’d do anything under his power to take care of his soldiers,” Brown said. “He’s the best boss I’ve ever had.”

Shumate thanked his wife of 27 years, D’Letter, for her support and understanding during his 30-year military career. He said he’s resigned to the fact that he will be the one taking orders from now on.

“She keeps me grounded,” Shumate said of his wife. “She tells me, ‘You don’t give the orders in this house; you receive them.’”

Contact staff writer Tim Mowry at 459-7587.