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At Masada, a glimpse into the Israeli soul
January 11, 2008
LTG H Steven Blum, chief of the National Guard Bureau, looks toward the Dead Sea from Masada, Israel, on Dec. 3, 2007. Masada was a mountain fortress held by Jewish rebels in revolt against Rome in the year 73. Blum spent four days in Israel to bolster the National Guard Bureau's relationship with the Israeli Defense Force's Home Front Command and discuss joint exercises and other possible exchanges under the aegis of U.S. European Command.
Bringing the commissary to the Guard
January 11, 2008
Patrick B. Nixon, president of the American Logistics Association (ALA); Richard S. Page, acting director of the Defense Commissary Agency; LTG H Steven Blum, chief of the National Guard Bureau; and Russ Moffett, chairman of the ALA's consumer awareness team, with an oversize CertifiCheck in Blum's Pentagon office during a Dec. 20 visit to discuss improving Guardmembers' access to commissary benefits.
Desert MOUT facility is model for National Guard
January 11, 2008
LTG H Steven Blum, chief of the National Guard Bureau (center foreground), and other National Guard leaders and members of the Israeli Defense Forces pause during a Dec. 3, 2007, visit to an Israeli MOUT (military operations on urban terrain) training facility in the Negev Desert, Israel. National Guard officials visited the facility during a four-day trip to Israel to bolster the National Guard Bureau's relationship with that country's Home Front Command and discuss joint exercises and other possible exchanges under the aegis of the U.S. European Command.
Guard recruits go Active First; recruiting, retention numbers soar
January 11, 2008
Spc. Jonathan Wight from Lavonia, Ga., stands during a introduction by Army Secetary Pete Geren as one of the newest recruits into the Active First recruiting program during a Jan. 10 press conference at the Pentagon.
TLC to air American Chopper episodes featuring Guard's "Patriot Chopper"
January 8, 2008
Tennessee Guard Soldier competing in Alaska's Iditarod
January 8, 2008
Master Sgt. Rodney Whaley, the first Tennessean to compete in the Iditarod, makes a practice run with his team of sled dogs.
Nevada senator surveys flooding; Guard provided meals to displaced
January 8, 2008
Nevada National Guard Soldiers unload two pallets of MREs (Meals Ready to Eat) for the more than 3,000 displaced residents of Fernley, Nev., Jan. 6. The town of Fernley (located about 30 miles east of Reno) was flooded with icy water when a levee holding back the Truckee canal gave way Jan. 5 after a severe winter storm. About 50 Guardmembers in the state have been activated to help with the storm damage.
ELC Phase One Nears Completion
January 7, 2008
Air Force Staff Sgt. Kevin Gordon, Senior Master Sgt. Patrick Obrien and Senior Airman Kevin Green construct a special cell, Dec. 27, 2007, that will be used to hold detainee witnesses during military commissions. This is one of many new features of the Expeditionary Legal Complex. JTF Guantanamo conducts safe and humane care and custody of detained enemy combatants. The JTF conducts interrogation operations to collect strategic intelligence in support of the Global War on Terror and supports law enforcement and war crimes investigations. JTF Guantanamo is committed to the safety and security of American service members and civilians working inside its detention facilities.
76th Brigade Departure Ceremony
January 4, 2008
Sgt. Shane Pudgett hugs his wife goodbye as his son, Bryce, age 5, sheds a tear on Monday, Jan. 2, 2008 at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis. This will be the largest Indiana National Guard deployment since World War II, with more than 3,400 Soldiers from about 30 Indiana communities are scheduled to deploy to Iraq for 12-months. The brigade, headquartered in Indianapolis, is commanded by Col. Courtney Carr and Command Sgt. Maj. Gregory Rhoades.
Guard family gets Extreme dream home
December 19, 2007
"Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" host Ty Pennington joins the family of Virginia National Guardsman Spc. Michael Lucas in cheering "Move that bus!," allowing the family their first glimpse of their totally-renovated home in Rice, Va., Dec. 10. Lucas is currently deployed to Iraq with Company C, 3rd Battalion, 116th Infantry, Virginia Army National Guard.
Washington National Guard goes door-to-door, shore-to-shore in December storms
December 18, 2007
Nearly 500 Washington State Army and Air National Guardmembers were activated in early December and worked to restore power and ensure safe travel around flooded roads, among other duties. The Guard mobilized with about 75 vehicles that could get through many of the flooded areas that regular vehicles could not.
Air Guard Recruiters Press on Through Major Changes
December 17, 2007
Master Sgt. Dana Togliatti (right) speaks with Air National Guard leaders at Mansfield Air National Guard Base, Ohio, Dec. 6 during a unit visit by Air Guard Director Lt. Gen. Craig McKinley.
NY National Guard marks National Guard Birthday
December 14, 2007
Command Chief Master Sergeant Hardy Pierce (right) and Command Sergeant Major Robert Van Pelt finish cutting the National Guard Birthday cake in the Department of Military and Naval Affairs auditorium in Latham, N.Y. Dec. 13, 2007
Congratulating the National Guard on its 371st Birthday
December 14, 2007
Deployed units celebrate 371st birthday
December 14, 2007
Master Sgt. Clarence Mobley, of the 58th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, cuts the birthday cake during celebrations of the National Guard's 371st birthday at the Al Faw palace at Camp Victory, Iraq, Thursday, Dec. 13, 2007. Mobley, the oldest National Guard servicemember in attendance,has served in both Vietnam as well as the current conflict in Iraq. Celebrations at Camp Victory included representatives from both the oldest National Guard unit as well as the youngest.
Guardmembers respond to Midwest ice storms
December 13, 2007
Missouri Army National Guard Soldiers supported local authorities in December by conducting door-to-door wellness checks in Barton County after the region was hit by a major ice storm.
Former National Guard Bureau chief, Lt. Gen. Emmett Walker, Jr. dies
December 13, 2007
Lt. Gen. Emmett H. Walker, Jr
National Guard learns lessons from a city under fire
December 12, 2007
Yona Yahav, mayor of Haifa, Israel, briefs LTG H Steven Blum, the chief of the National Guard Bureau, about how his city responded to the 2006 Lebanon War. National Guard Bureau officials visited Haifa in early December to learn how the city coped with a 34-day missile bombardment.
National Guard to help Afghan agriculture
December 11, 2007
Members of the Missouri Army National Guard's Agri-Business Development Team visit with a local farmer in eastern Afghanistan to discuss how they will assist the farmers in that region in the future.
Operation Deep Freeze main season underway
December 11, 2007
Air National Guard aircrew members utilize a jet-assisted takeoff to depart Shackleton Glacier, located in the Transantarctic Mountains 500 miles south of McMurdo Station, Antarctica, Nov 26. The aircrew conducted an open field landing to deliver a small National Science Foundation geology field camp team to the area. Assigned to the 109th Airlift Wing, Scotia, N.Y., the aircrews are flying the Antarctica missions in support of Operation Deep Freeze.