This is the 217th Personnel Services Battalion Distinct-ive Unit Insignia. It features a quill pen as a symbol of the administrative function the unit performed; it is crossed with a downward-pointing sword to denote that its support was for the individual soldiers, a mission reinforced by the unit motto of “Committed To The Soldier.”
Also known as a unit crest or DUI, a Distinctive Unit Insignia is worn by all Soldiers (except General Officers) in units that have been authorized to be issued the device. It is worn centered on the shoulder loops of the Army Green Service Uniform (AGSU) and the blue Army Service Uniform (ASU, Enlisted only) with the base of the insignia toward the outside shoulder seam. DUIs are not worn on the Dress variations of either uniform, however.
More guidance on wear of the DUI is found in DA Pamphlet 670-1, Section 21-22, "Distinctive unit insignia" and 21–3(d) and (e), "Beret" and "Garrison Cap," respectively.
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The 217th Personnel Services Battalion was a unit in the North Carolina Army National Guard headquartered in Butler, NC. For its service while deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom between December 2004 and October 2005, the Battalion was awarded a Meritorious Unit Commendation for providing “exemplary command and control to a wide range of military and civilian organizations…and…invaluable leadership to theater operations.”
It is unclear when this unit was inactivated, deactivated, redesignated, or disbanded.