An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Home : News : Article View
NEWS | Nov. 24, 2015

Gen. Grass issues Thanksgiving message to civilians and uniformed personnel

By Gen. Frank J. Grass Chief, National Guard Bureau

ARLINGTON, Va. - They had almost no food. They faced a harsh winter in poorly constructed shelters. And nearly half of them died from sickness. Yet the pilgrims who came to America wanted a day to give thanks.

In the midst of the Civil War, one of the darkest periods in American history, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national day of Thanksgiving, a day for Americans to express gratitude for their blessings. Every year since, Americans have come together to reflect and to give thanks the fourth Thursday in November.

I, too, am thankful for the nearly 450,000 National Guard members for the work and sacrifice they make to keep our nation and communities strong and secure. I have met with Guardsmen and women serving overseas and in our 50 states, three territories and the District of Columbia. I have talked with Guard members who have lost friends in battle or have come home with permanent injuries. Despite their tremendous losses, they were thankful for the opportunity to serve.

I am thankful to the families and employers of Guardsmen who sacrifice each day to ensure our Soldiers and Airmen can focus on fighting our nation’s wars and protecting our homeland. Each has experienced loss, but they are thankful.

I am also thankful for the partnerships we have established with state and interagency domestic responders, and with 76 nations through our State Partnership Program. Our partners have seen firsthand the devastation wrought by natural disasters and by combat, but each has also saved lives and brought relief to the suffering. They are thankful.

Whether you are in uniform or a civilian, deployed or home, it is your service and commitment that allows us to enjoy the spirit of Thanksgiving. For that, we all are thankful!

 

 

Related Articles
U.S. Soldiers with the Army National Guard speak with D.C. locals while patrolling Metro Center Aug 26, 2025. About 2,000 National Guard members are supporting the D.C. Safe and Beautiful mission providing critical support to the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department in ensuring the safety of all who live, work, and visit the District.
Guard Members From Six States, D.C. on Duty in Washington in Support of Local, Fed Authorities
By Sgt. 1st Class Jon Soucy, | Aug. 29, 2025
WASHINGTON – More than 2,000 National Guard Soldiers and Airmen from six states and the District of Columbia are on duty in Washington as part of Joint Task Force – District of Columbia in support of local and federal...

Lt. Gen. H. Steven Blum, chief of the National Guard Bureau, Maj. Gen. Russel Honore, Task Force Katrina commander, and Brig. Gen. John Basilica, 256th Infantry Brigade Combat Team commander, talk to news media during the aftermath of Hurricane Rita on Sep. 29, 2005. Basilica was appointed commander of Task Force Pelican, responsible for coordinating National Guard hurricane response efforts across the State. The task force included tens of thousands of National Guard Soldiers from Louisiana and other states.
Louisiana Guard’s Tiger Brigade Marks 20th Anniversary of Redeployment and Hurricane Response
By Rhett Breerwood, | Aug. 29, 2025
NEW ORLEANS – This fall, the Louisiana National Guard’s 256th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, known as the Tiger Brigade, commemorates the 20th anniversary of its redeployment from Iraq in September 2005, coinciding with the...

Alaska Air National Guard HH-60G Pave Hawk aviators and Guardian Angels, assigned to the 210th and 212th Rescue Squadrons, respectively, conduct a hoist rescue demonstration while participating in a multi-agency hoist symposium at Bryant Army Airfield on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, July 22, 2025. The symposium, hosted by Alaska Army National Guard aviators assigned to Golf Company, 2-211th General Support Aviation Battalion, included U.S. Coast Guard crews assigned to Sector Western Alaska and U.S. Arctic out of Air Stations Kodiak and Sitka, Alaska Air National Guardsmen with the 176th Wing rescue squadrons, U.S. Army aviators from Fort Wainwright’s 1-52nd General Support Aviation Battalion, Alaska State Troopers, and civilian search and rescue professional volunteers from the Alaska Mountain Rescue Group. The collaborative training drew on the participants’ varied backgrounds, experiences, and practices, to enhance hoist proficiency and collective readiness when conducting life-saving search and rescue missions in Alaska’s vast and austere terrain. (Alaska Army National Guard photo by Alejandro Peña)
Alaska Air Guard Conducts Multiple Hoist Rescues of Stranded Rafters on Kichatna River
By Staff Sgt. Seth LaCount, | Aug. 29, 2025
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska — Alaska Air National Guard members with the 176th Wing rescued three rafters Aug. 28 after their raft flipped over on the Kichatna River.The Alaska Rescue Coordination Center opened...