ARLINGTON, Va. — The Army has signed up the 1,000th soldier through a program that tries to entice members of other branches of the service to become soldiers, a Defense Department news release says.

Most recently, David Guevara left the Navy to become a soldier and is now at White Sands Missile Range for training, the news release says.

Launched in 2004, the “Blue to Green” program was designed to allow servicemembers from the Navy, Air Force and the Marine Corps to join the Army.

“This has been a great success for the Army, and our sister services, as well as those servicemembers who decided during a time of a ground combat to stay in the military by joining the Army team,” said Army spokesman Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty.

Since its inception, 317 officers and 683 enlisted servicemembers have joined the Army through the program, Hilferty said in a Tuesday e-mail to Stars and Stripes.

Under the program, enlisted servicemembers are eligible for up to $40,000 to join the Army, while officers can receive up to $10,000, Hilferty said.

Asked about the disparity in bonuses for officers and enlisted servicemembers, Hilferty said the amount of bonuses offered by the program differ based on Military Occupational Specialty, education level and other criteria.

“We determine by target populations what program/bonus is necessary to bring in Blue-to-Green Officers and enlisted servicemembers,” he said.