Guard News - The National Guard

INNG, agencies partner to ship critical COVID-19 supplies
December 8, 2020 — INDIANAPOLIS – The Indiana National Guard and members of the State Police and the departments of health and transportation emulated the minuteman credo and were ready at a moment's notice to respond... MORE

The Indiana National Guard and state agency partners helped ship millions of items of personal protective equipment and respirators throughout the Hoosier state and to Indiana hospitals with the most urgent needs to help combat the coronavirus pandemic from March to Dec. 1, 2020.

Alaska Air National Guard Airmen rescue snowmachiner
December 8, 2020 — JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska – Alaska Air National Guard Airmen of the 176th Wing rescued an injured snowmachiner Dec. 6 near Petersville about 95 miles north of Anchorage and just south of... MORE

A UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter crew conducts hoist training to maintain proficiency in July 2020.

Minnesota Guard finds meaningful work in long-term care
December 7, 2020 — ST. PAUL, Minn. – Members of the Minnesota National Guard are experiencing firsthand the impact COVID-19 is having on residents in long-term care and the staff who care for them as they step in to... MORE

Soldiers and Airmen from the Minnesota National Guard participated in temporary nurse's aide training at Camp Ripley, Minnesota, on Dec. 3, 2020, to prepare for a mission to assist at long-term care facilities as part of the state's COVID-19 response.

Montana National Guard partners with college for training
December 7, 2020 — LITTLE FALLS, Minn. – In preparation for deployment to Romania in 2021, the 1051st Fire Fighter Tactical Group conducted training with Central Lakes College at Camp Ripley Nov. 30-Dec. 4.Sgt. Jared... MORE

Spcs. Graydon Irish, Justin Wilkinson and Kyle Vanatta, firefighters with the Montana National Guard's 1051st Fire Fighting Tactical Group, train on Camp Ripley, Minnesota. The Soldiers were familiarizing themselves with operating a pump and adjusting water pressure before mobilizing overseas in 2021.

Behavioral health pros help NH Guardsmen through pandemic
December 7, 2020 — CONCORD, N.H. – Since March, more than 700 members of the New Hampshire National Guard have been activated for pandemic relief efforts across the state. From food pantries and PPE warehouses to test... MORE

Maj. Troy Townsend, director of behavioral health, office of the state surgeon, New Hampshire Army National Guard, poses with therapy dog Cache Aug. 13, 2019. Cache, a 9-year-old retired sled dog, travels with Townsend across New Hampshire to meet Guard members.

Virginia Guard flight crews pair with scuba rescue team
December 7, 2020 — CHESTERFIELD, Va. – Virginia National Guard flight crews have worked with the Chesterfield County Fire and Emergency Medical Services Scuba Rescue Team for nearly a decade, developing Virginia’s... MORE

Virginia National Guard flight crews train with Chesterfield County Fire and Emergency Medical Services Scuba Rescue Team members on rescue hoist operations Nov. 19, 2020, in Chesterfield, Virginia. The Virginia aviators and Chesterfield first responders form the Virginia Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team, or HART.

National Guard advises Czech Republic on COVID-19 response
December 7, 2020 — LINCOLN, Neb. – Members of the Nebraska and Texas National Guard traveled to the Czech Republic in November at the request of the Czech Republican Ministry of Health to share best practices on... MORE

Czech Republic Ministry of Defense Jan Havranek thanks Texas National Guard Joint Surgeon Army Col. Peter Coldwell and the medical information exchange team from the Texas and Nebraska National Guard at the Czech Republic Ministry of Defense in Prague for the State Partnership Program medical support, Nov. 23, 2020. Czech commemorative coins were given to each member as a token of appreciation.

New York National Guard honors 8th president on his birthday
December 7, 2020 — KINDERHOOK, N.Y. – New York National Guard Airmen honored Martin Van Buren, the nation's eighth president, on Dec. 5 in the Hudson Valley village where he was born and died.Brig. Gen. Michael Bank,... MORE

Brig. Gen. Michael Bank, the assistant adjutant general – air for New York state, Chief Master Sgt. Jeffrey Trottier and other members of the New York Air National Guard salute the resting place of former President Martin Van Buren during a ceremony commemorating his birthday at the Kinderhook Reformed Church Cemetery in Kinderhook, New York. Van Buren was the eighth president of the United States and a native of Kinderhook.

Michigan National Guard helps meet demand for food
December 7, 2020 — COMSTOCK PARK, Mich. – Food banks have reached out to the Michigan Guard for assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic due to the increased demand for food and a shortage of volunteers.“I was really... MORE

A Soldier serving with Task Force Spartan, the Michigan National Guard’s COVID-19 response team assigned to Michigan food banks, repacks Pop-Tarts at Feeding America West Michigan, Comstock Park, Michigan, Nov. 17, 2020.

Alaska Guard assists in search and rescue after landslide
December 4, 2020 — JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska — The Alaska National Guard assists local, state and federal authorities with search and rescue efforts after a landslide Dec. 2 in Haines, Alaska, due to... MORE

An Alaska Army National Guard UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter conducts search and rescue in Haines after a major landslide on Dec. 3, 2020.

Tennessee Guardsman testing community for COVID-19
December 4, 2020 — NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Throughout 2020, the Tennessee National Guard has been supporting various foreign operations around the world, as well as domestic emergencies at home. The most pivotal of them all... MORE

Sgt. Robert Neal, an infantryman with 2nd Squadron, 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment, conducts COVID-19 testing at a drive-thru rural assessment site in Montgomery County, Sept. 28.

Wisconsin Guard makes a wish come true for a boy to be a Soldier
December 4, 2020 — FORT MCCOY, Wis. — On Nov. 7, Fort McCoy hosted a Make-A-Wish Foundation event for 8-year-old Chicago resident Miguel Garcia, whose wish was to be an Army Soldier. Garcia, along with several family... MORE

Eight-year-old Miguel Garcia and others participate in a Make a Wish Foundation event on Nov. 7, 2020, at Fort McCoy, Wis.

NY Guard teammates ready for National Guard sniper challenge
December 3, 2020 — NEW YORK, New York – Sgt. 1st Class Matthew Melendez and Sgt. Andreas Diaz went to Afghanistan together, took the New York Police Department test together, graduated from the police academy together... MORE

New York Army National Guard's Sgt 1st Class Matthew Melendez ( left) and Sgt. Andreas Diaz, both members of the 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry, pose for a photograph in the unit's historic Lexington Avenue Armory in New York City on Nov. 25, 2020.

NG leader highlights missions during ‘unprecedented year’
December 3, 2020 — ARLINGTON, Va. – The Army National Guard’s senior enlisted leader has dubbed 2020 the “year of the Guard” after states frequently called on units to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, civil unrest and... MORE

Pfc. Kathryn Ratliff works at the Nissan Stadium COVID-19 testing site in downtown Nashville, Aug. 21.

Hawaii medical Airmen conduct drive-thru flu vaccinations
December 3, 2020 — JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, Hawaii – It's not your average drive-thru. There are no cheeseburgers or servings of fries. You can't order any milkshakes and you can't request a super-sized beverage... MORE

Tech. Sgt. Alvin Turla, 154th Medical Group aerospace medical service specialist, administers the flu shot to Master Sgt. Bradley Tabron 154th Logistics Readiness Squadron vehicle operations specialist during a Hawaii Air National Guard drive-thru vaccination operation held Oct. 3, 2020, at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.

South Carolina National Guard conducts SUAS RAVEN training
December 2, 2020 — EASTOVER, S.C. – The South Carolina National Guard conducted the Small Unmanned Aircraft System (SUAS), RAVEN, at McCrady Training Center Oct. 20-30 to train U.S. Army National Guard Soldiers to... MORE

U.S. Army National Guard Soldiers from Hawaii, Nebraska, Virginia and South Carolina train on the Small Unmanned Aircraft System RAVEN during a 10-day class conducted by South Carolina National Guard instructors at the Regional Training Institute (RTI) Oct. 20-30, 2020, at McCrady Training Center in Eastover, South Carolina.

Guard members help spread socially distant holiday cheer
December 1, 2020 — BALLSTON SPA, N.Y. – More than 20 volunteers from the New York Army and Air National Guard joined area veterans and fellow service members at Ellms Tree Farm to load 125 Christmas trees in support of... MORE

Volunteers pass a tree up to FedEx driver Don Pelletier during the Trees for Troops loadout on Nov. 30, 2020, at Ellms Tree Farm in Ballston Spa, N.Y. More than 20 volunteers from the New York Army and Air National Guard joined with Capital District area veterans to help load about 125 Christmas trees being donated and sent to military bases around the country to support troops and military families this holiday season.

Colorado Guard First Sgt. honors father's service
December 1, 2020 — COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Eugene Patton Jr. grew up in the shadow of a man whose Army career he always admired but has ultimately surpassed.Patton recently pinned on the diamond as the first sergeant... MORE

Retired Sgt. 1st Class Eugene Patton Sr. affixes the insignia on his son 1st Sgt. Eugene Patton Jr. patrol cap during a promotion ceremony on October 20, 2020.

Retired pararescueman partners with Guardian Angels for rescue
December 1, 2020 — JBER, Alaska – Few would know from looking at retired Alaska Air National Guard Senior Master Sgt. Michael Wayt served 21 years on active duty between the regular Air Force and the Alaska Air National... MORE

Wayt's team rescued a family of four on Aug. 15, 2020, at Beluga Point off the Seward Highway. When one of his team members was injured during the rescue, a 176th Wing HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter carrying pararescuemen launched from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson and extracted the injured firefighter.

Alaska National Guard rescues two hikers near Cooper Landing
December 1, 2020 — JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska — Alaska Air National Guardsmen of the 176th Wing rescued two distressed hikers Nov. 29 near Cooper Landing about 60 miles south of Anchorage. Alaska Air... MORE

An Alaska Air National Guard HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter and aircrew assigned to the 210th Rescue Squadron, with pararescuemen aboard from the 212th Rescue Squadron, saved a distressed hiker on July 26, 2020, at Mount Williwaw east of Anchorage

Wisconsin Guard Conducts Drone Training

Tennessee Guard Airmen Broaden Communication Skills

Washington Guard Builds Readiness With New Executive Officer Course

Maryland Guard Enhances Response With K-9 Medevac Training

Guard Soldiers Help Rescue Three From Rio Grande