(Madison, WI) — The Wisconsin National Guard is having trouble recruiting. The guard yesterday said it is 17 percent short of its goals for the year. Lt. Colonel Shannon Hellenbrand says it makes it harder on all soldiers when there are not enough new soldiers coming into the guard. Recruitment challenges are not new for the guard, Hellenbrand says they fell short last year as well. The Wisconsin National Guard wanted to recruit 950 new soldiers last year, but they ended-up getting just 577. There are a number of recruitment challenges, commanders say, including worried about the pandemic and a lack of physically fit young people who can meet the minimum National Guard standards.