Guard News - The National Guard

Louisiana Guard member practices jungle warfare in Belize
April 27, 2018 — NEW ORLEANS – Louisiana National Guard 1st Lt. Kenrick Cormier became the first National Guard member to graduate from the Belize Defence Force's Jungle Warfare Instructor Course, Dec. 2017. Cormier... MORE

Louisiana National Guard Kenrick Cormier, second from left, back row, stands with his fellow graduates from the Belize Defence Force’s Jungle Warfare Instructor Course in Belize. Cormier was the first Guardsman to participate in the course.

National Guard's 'Military Child of the Year' is named
April 26, 2018 — ARLINGTON, Va. -- Actively seeking opportunities to help others is something that Aaron Hall, a 16-year-old Minarets High School junior from O'Neals, California, constantly strives to do. "Life is... MORE

Aaron Hall, the 2018 Operation Homefront National Guard military child of the year, stands during the National Anthem at a gala event held in Arlington, Va., April 19, 2018. Joining Aaron was Lt. Gen Daniel R. Hokanson, the 11th Vice Chief of the National Guard Bureau.

Kansas National Guard fulfills ill teenager's wishes
April 25, 2018 — TOPEKA, Kansas - Seth Cummings, a junior from Topeka West High School, recently had the chance few of his age get to do: to pull the tail on a Paladin M10946 155mm Artillery System on March 24... MORE

Seth Cummings flies above Topeka, Kansas, aboard a Black Hawk helicopter from the 1st Battalion 108th Aviation Regiment as part of a Make-A-Wish foundation dream come true on March 30, 2018.

Freedom Award finalists named for 2018
April 24, 2018 — WASHINGTON - Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve has announced the 30 finalists for the 2018 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award. The finalists represent large and small... MORE

Air Guard, Reserve wings kick off annual MAFFS training
April 24, 2018 — SACRAMENTO, Calif. - As temperatures heated up this week in northern California, aerial firefighters from four C-130 airlift wings operating the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Forest Service's... MORE

National Guard takes top honors in DoD environmental awards
April 23, 2018 — ARLINGTON, Va. – The National Guard was recognized for environment stewardship, bringing home awards in multiple categories in the 2018 Secretary of Defense Environmental Awards. The Hawaii Army... MORE

Ga. Air Guard unit spearheads Puerto Rico hurricane recovery
April 23, 2018 — SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - The Georgia Air National Guard's 202d Engineering Installation Squadron deployed here Sunday to spearhead hurricane recovery efforts for 156th Airlift Wing base communications... MORE

U.S. Air Force Senior Master Sgt. Mark Buchanan, right, superintendent, Staff Sgt. Charles Chalk, center, cable and antenna technician, and Staff Sgt. Wilson Gardner, airfield systems technician, from the 202d Engineering Installation Squadron (EIS), Georgia Air National Guard (ANG), review technical drawings at Muñiz ANG Base in San Juan, Puerto Rico, April 19, 2018. The 202d EIS deployed to the Puerto Rico Air National Guard’s 156th Airlift Wing as part of the Hurricane Irma and Maria recovery efforts to spearhead a large-scale project relocating communications systems cabling and equipment to a new hardened facility.

S.C. Guard exchanges maintenance tips with Colombian army
April 23, 2018 — COLUMBIA, S.C. - Five Colombian army soldiers traveled to South Carolina to meet with South Carolina Army National Guard maintenance experts to discuss best practices during a subject matter expert... MORE

U.S. Army Sgt. Diego Franco translates from English to Spanish for Judson Hockman of General Dynamics Land Systems on M1135 Stryker maintenance during a State Partnership Program subject matter expert exchange April 18, 2018. Five soldiers from the Colombian army spent a week with Soldiers from the South Carolina Army National Guard during the exchange on maintenance best practices.

Army multi-component worst-case exercise tests the force
April 23, 2018 — MUSCATATUCK URBAN TRAINING CENTER, Ind. – Fields of debris, demolished vehicles and bodies of mannequins and live role players laid across an entire town center; words on bed sheets, asking for... MORE

Exercise officials for Guardian Response 18 tour Muscatatuck Urban Training Center ahead of Guardian Response 18 exercise, April 11, 2018. More than 4,500 Soldiers from across the country participated in GR18, a multi-component training exercise to validate U.S. Army units’ ability to support the Defense Support of Civil Authorities in the event of a Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear catastrophe.

West Virginia National Guard and Qatar selected as partners
April 19, 2018 — CHARLESTON, W. Va. - The West Virginia National Guard has been notified of its selection to partner with Qatar as a part of the National Guard Bureau's State Partnership Program, expanding its... MORE

The West Virginia National Guard and Qatar are the latest partners in the State Partnership Program.

Air National Guard unit trains for combat in Arkansas
April 19, 2018 — FORT CHAFFEE MANEUVER TRAINING CENTER, Ark. – The crunch of gravel is swiftly drowned out by the sounds of rapid gunfire as a small, six-man team finds cover in a tree line and targets enemy forces... MORE

A Tactical Air Control Party specialist listens to his team on his radio while participating in a field training exercise, or FTX, at Fort Chaffee Maneuver Training Center in Arkansas, April 14, 2018.

N.Y. Guard Soldiers survived U-boats, crowded ships in 1918
April 18, 2018 — SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - As April 1918 became May, the 27,000 Soldiers of the New York National Guard's 27th Division left Camp Wadsworth, South Carolina, and boarded trains and ships heading for... MORE

Soldiers of the 105th Field Artillery on board the troopship Mercury in Newport News, Virginia, in May 1918 as the 27th Division, the New York National Guard's division, leaves the United States for France in World War I. This photograph appeared in Maj. Gen. John F O'Ryan's book, "The Story of the 27th Division."

W. Va. Guard’s Patriot Guardens program taking root
April 18, 2018 — CHARLESTON, W. Va. - A new project taking root in the Kanawha Valley is aiming to help small farmers and veterans in West Virginia grow and then market carrots to restaurants and other local... MORE

Participants are receiving supplies from West Virginia State University Extension Service for those of the West Virginia National Guard's Patriot Guardens educational program. Each participant receives seeds, a 3x8 raised bed and 2 bales of Pro Mix Soil to get started. The participants then purchase additional soil and compost to add to the raised bed as their contribution.

Okla. National Guard assisting firefighters on wildfires
April 18, 2018 — MOORELAND, Okla. – Oklahoma's historic wildfire conditions led to fires spreading fast and firefighters scrambling to extinguish the blazes and mitigate the damage. As the high winds and dry... MORE

An Oklahoma National Guard Black Hawk helicopter was dispatched to help with firefighting efforts Thursday.

Gen. Lengyel details Guard's contributions in Senate hearing
April 18, 2018 — WASHINGTON - In support of the National Defense Strategy, the National Guard's focus remains on the war fight, defending and securing the homeland and building enduring partnerships, the chief of the... MORE

Tim Stampley, a Department of the Army Civilian observer controller trainer, and his crew, speaks to Gen. Joseph L. Lengyel, Chief of the National Guard Bureau, and gives him a tour of the training during Guardian Response 18 at Muscatatuck Urban Training Center, Ind., April 14, 2018.

Husband-wife team are First Sergeants in 189th Airlift Wing
April 17, 2018 — ARLINGTON, Va. – It's not uncommon for spouses to serve in the military together, but two members of the Arkansas Air National Guard's 189th Airlift Wing are believed to be the first spouses to serve... MORE

Air Force Master Sgts. Herbert “Glen” Bates, left, and Stephanie Bates are the first spouses to serve concurrently as first sergeants in the Arkansas Air National Guard’s 189th Airlift Wing.

South Carolina Guard certified on disaster response
April 17, 2018 — CAMP ATTERBURY, Ind. - Crumpled cars nestled atop each other. Shredded clothing and debris littered the landscape in front of buildings with blown-out windows. Tired, hungry, thirsty, and injured... MORE

South Carolina National Guard Sgt. Paul Reid and other medics from the 251st Area Support Medical Company, in-process simulated casualties, April 12, 2018, during a drill at Muscatatuck Urban Training Center, Indiana, as part of Exercise Vibrant Response.

Idaho Guard unit conducts first major Abrams drill since '04
April 16, 2018 — BOISE, Idaho - The 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team's 2-116th Combined Arms Battalion (AR) completed gunnery training March 16 to 23 at the Orchard Combat Training Center. The training marked the... MORE

NGB Chief Lengyel observes joint disaster response training
April 16, 2018 — MUSCATATUCK URBAN TRAINING CENTER, Ind. – Gray skies greeted the 28th Chief of the National Guard Bureau, Air Force Gen. Joseph L. Lengyel, and other distinguished visitors, including commanding... MORE

NGB Chief Lengyel observes disaster training

Massachusetts Guardsman comes full circle on Marathon Monday
April 13, 2018 — HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. – Just before 3 p.m. on April 15, 2013, two bombs exploded on Boylston Street in Boston ripping through a crowd that had gathered at the finish line of the city’s annual... MORE

Army 1st Lt. Joe Fortini, an explosive ordinance qualified officer, suits up in full protective gear April 11, 2018 at Camp Edwards, Massachusetts.

Arizona and Pennsylvania Air Guards Train Together in Montana

South Carolina Air Guard Widens Taxiway

Alabama Air Guard Participates in Checkered Flag 25-2

Alaska Army National Guard Conducts Medevac Mission

Tennessee Army Guard Members Recognized at Gala Event for Actions During Hurricane Response Efforts