STURGIS, Mich. – The Michigan Air National Guard helped conduct free COVID-19 of residents of Sturgis and nearby communities Sept. 22.
To identify risk associated with the virus and help slow the spread, the 182nd Task Force deployed a team of Airmen from Selfridge Air National Guard Base and Battle Creek Air National Guard Base.
“We are doing drive-thru community-based testing,” said Senior Airman Daniel Green, 127th Maintenance Squadron maintainer. “A lot of people need to be tested so they can go back to work. We help them out with that.”
The team had approximately 300 tests for the four-hour event. Guard members partnered with a local health agency to provide the testing.
“They [the Michigan National Guard] are here to help us with specimen collection for individuals who want to be tested,” said Rebecca Burns, health officer with the Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency. “We are very thankful for their support. We need them here to make this work.”
In addition to the testing in St. Joseph County, the Michigan National Guard provided testing in Alpena and Ottawa counties on the same day.
“When I heard about the testing mission, I wanted to be on it. We have been on this mission for about five months,” said Green. “It is nice to be able to give back to the community.”
Four more testing events were scheduled throughout the week, in Allegan, Ottawa, Wayne and Washtenaw counties.