Guard News - The National Guard

Alaskan village welcomes Santa on his early rounds
November 8, 2018 — JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska – The Alaska National Guard and the Salvation Army united Nov. 1 to take Operation Santa Claus to the village of Emmonak. An HC-130J Combat King II aircraft... MORE

Alaska Air National Guard Staff Sgt. Vanessa Peterson hands out snacks to children in Emmonak during Operation Santa Claus on Nov. 1, 2018. Operation Santa Claus is an Alaska National Guard annual community outreach program that provides Christmas gifts, books, backpacks filled with school supplies, fresh fruit, and sundaes to youngsters in rural communities.

133rd Army National Guard Band provides more than just music
November 7, 2018 — CAMP MURRAY, Wash. - “Where words fail, music speaks,” said Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, who was particularly noted for his fairy tales. Chief Warrant Officer 3 Scott Pierson, commander of... MORE

The 133rd Army National Guard Band shown during their 2017 holiday concert in Auburn, Wash., plays year-round.

History: National Guard assisted WWI allies in ending war
November 7, 2018 — ARLINGTON, Va. - At 11 a.m. Greenwich Mean Time on Nov. 11, 1918 ("the eleventh hour of the eleventh month"), an Armistice took place between the Allied and Central powers across all battle zones. It... MORE

After this gun section of Battery D, 105th Field Artillery Regiment, New York National Guard, had fired its last shot at Etraye, the men raised Old Glory amid triumphant shouts on Armistice Day, Nov. 11, 1918.

167th Airlift Wing officers participate in exchange program
November 5, 2018 — MARTINSBURG, W. Va. - Once opponents, the United States and Germany have grown a close alliance since the end of World War II. For more than three decades, their respective military members have... MORE

Lt. Col. Teddy Wundenberg, third from left,a maintenance officer for Helicopter Wing 64 of the German Air Force, poses for a photo with the 167th Airlift Wing's Inspector General staff during the 167th AW's deployment training exercise in Alpena, Mich., last June. Lt. Col. James Freid-Studlo, the 167th AW inspector general, second from left, hosted Wundenberg for about two weeks as part of the Military Reserve Exchange Program.

Citizen-Warrior: Military, police work go hand-in-hand for Guard member
October 31, 2018 — ARLINGTON, Va. – Air Force Staff Sgt. Rodrigo Acosta, a security forces specialist with the Arizona Air National Guard's 162nd Wing, said he felt fortunate to belong to an Arizona-based unit when he... MORE

Air Force Staff Sgt. Rodrigo Acosta, a security forces specialist with the Arizona Air National Guard's 162nd Wing and a Tucson Police Department police officer, reviews data on his patrol car laptop in Tucson, Arizona, Aug. 28, 2018. Acosta said he thrives in settings outside of the office environment. "I can't see myself sitting behind a desk at all. I think I would fall asleep," he said. "Law enforcement and security forces always keeps me on my toes."

U.S. Soldiers host Halloween fall festival in Ukraine
October 31, 2018 — YAVORIV, Ukraine - Soldiers from the Tennessee Army National Guard along with Canadian and Lithuanian counterparts hosted a Halloween fall festival Oct. 27 for Ukrainian soldiers and their families... MORE

Spc. Kristina Brown of the 278th ACR face paints during the Trick or Treat Halloween event at the Yavoriv Combat Training Center, Ukraine, Oct. 27, 2018.

New Jersey Guard recruiter knows disabilities inside and out
October 30, 2018 — JOINT BASE McGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. - On Oct. 18, all eyes were on New Jersey Army National Guard Capt. Domenico Lazzaro as he walked up to the podium using two canes. Seventeen months had passed... MORE

$U.S. Army Capt. Domenico Lazzaro, a specialty branch recruiter with the New Jersey Army National Guard, shows the audience a slide of the different levels of spinal cord injuries during the National Disability Employment Awareness Month observance at Joint Force Headquarters located at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J., Oct. 18, 2018. On June 11, 2017, Lazzaro fell while navigating an obstacle course at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst and fractured his T8 vertebrae. The seven-hour surgery left him paraplegic. Lazzaro’s goal is to be able to pass the Army physical fitness test and continue to serve in the Guard.$

Guard members answer the call to serve as volunteer firefighters
October 30, 2018 — HARRISBURG, Pa. - With a critical shortage of volunteer firefighters, some National Guard members find themselves stepping up to serve in another uniform. The volunteer firefighter shortage is so... MORE

Chief Warrant Officer 3 Kenneth A. Phillips, 28th Infantry Division, has served as a volunteer firefighter and in the National Guard at the same time for more than 30 years. Some Guard members find the time for their full-time jobs, reserve duty and firefighting.

Armistice left some New York Guard Soldiers with mixed feelings
October 26, 2018 — SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - The last American Soldier to die in World War I—and the last Soldier of any of the warring powers to die during the war—was a member of the 313th Infantry Regiment, made up of... MORE

Soldiers of the New York National Guard's 27th Division celebrating the end of World War I following the Armistice on Nov. 11, 1918. According to Maj. Gen. John O'Ryan, the commander of the division, this photo and others like it were staged in the days following the signing of the document that ended combat in the World War by U.S. Army Signal Corps photographers.

Idaho Army National Guard member builds pizza chain
October 23, 2018 — POCATELLO, Idaho - Idaho Army National Guard Sgt. Brian Padigimus had never been to New York, taken a culinary arts course or worked in a restaurant before opening a New York-style pizzeria, but he... MORE

Idaho Army National Guard Sgt. Brian Padigimus prepares a pizza at Lucy's New York Style Pizzeria in Roberts, Idaho, Sept. 19, 2018. Padigimus, an infantryman assigned to the 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team, started the pizza chain with a childhood friend in 2009.

Horsham Air Guard Station makes efforts to conserve energy
October 19, 2018 — HORSHAM AIR GUARD STATION, Pa. - October is Air Force Energy Action Month. This is part of the Energy Flight Plan, which the Air Force established to enhance mission assurance through energy... MORE

The Horsham Air Guard Station, Horsham, Pa. clicks the switch to save power here in 2018. One such initiative included replacing all the conventional street lights on base with high-efficiency lights.

The Horsham Air Guard Station, Horsham, Pa. clicks the switch to save power here in 2018. One such initiative included replacing all the conventional street lights on base with high-efficiency lights.

The Horsham Air Guard Station, Horsham, Pa. clicks the switch to save power here in 2018. One such initiative included replacing all the conventional street lights on base with high-efficiency lights.

Coolest job in the Air Force, in a manner of speaking
October 15, 2018 — HARRISON TOWNSHIP, Mich. - Oxygen begins to boil at -297 degrees Fahrenheit and will freeze at around -361 degrees Fahrenheit — in between these two temperatures you have oxygen in liquid form... MORE

Airman 1st Class Molly Michael and Tech. Sgt. Ben Jonkman, both A-10 Thunderbolt II crew chiefs at Selfridge Air National Guard Base, Mich., service A-10s with liquid oxygen at Selfridge, Oct. 14, 2018. Michael recently completed her initial technical training and Jonkman was supervising her on-the-job training.

Ohio Air National Guard recruit follows her father's path
October 12, 2018 — MANSFIELD, Ohio - Col. Gary McCue has been in the Ohio Air National Guard for 35 years. In his current position as the director of staff for Air at the Ohio Joint Force Headquarters in Columbus, McCue... MORE

Col. Gary McCue (back right) and wife Molly stand behind their daughters Emily (from left), Josie, Zoe and Carly after Josie took the oath of enlistment May 9, 2018, to become a member of the Ohio Air National Guard.

Physician assistant helps to put New York Guard Soldiers first
October 10, 2018 — WATERVLIET ARSENAL, N.Y. – For New York Army National Guard Physician Assistant Maj. Stephen Carson, service to his community was part of his life before graduating high school. Now, 12 years after... MORE

New York Army National Guard Maj. Stephen Carson, second from left, is seen with his aeromedical flight crew at Udairi Airfield after a mission during his deployment to Kuwait in 2013-14. Carson, then a captain, served as a Physician’s Assistant in support of the New York Army National Guard’s 642nd Support Battalion, part of the 42nd Combat Aviation Brigade.

New York National Guard's Rainbow Division helped end WWI
October 9, 2018 — "Nobody wants to talk very much about the recent battle," New York National Guard Chaplain Father Francis Duffy wrote in his diary entry in October 1918."It was a nightmare that one does not care to... MORE

National Guard Soldiers of the 165th Infantry (formerly the 69th Regiment, New York National Guard) prepare to move forward with weapons at the ready during an attack at Landres-et-St. Georges in October 1918. The 165th Infantry fought as part of the 42nd “Rainbow” Division during St. Mihiel in September and Meuse-Argonne in October, part of the American Expeditionary Force 100 days offensive that brought an end to World War I.

Citizen-Warrior: Puerto Rico Air Guard doctor serves community
October 2, 2018 — Innovative Readiness Training events allow National Guard members hands-on training that builds readiness while providing local communities with services that may not be available otherwise – such as... MORE

The Puerto Rico Air National Guard’s state air surgeon, Air Force Col. Victor Toraño, the air surgeon with the Puerto Rico Air National Guard, stands in one of the medical clinics set up as part of an Innovative Readiness Training event in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico.

Struck by lightning, Idaho Soldier lives life to the fullest
October 2, 2018 — BOISE, Idaho - The National Weather Service estimates the odds of being struck by lightning in the United States are one out of 14,600. Despite those odds, Idaho Army National Guard Capt. A.J. Edwards... MORE

Idaho Army National Guard Capt. A.J. Edwards poses for a photo while tossing a football Sept. 27, 2018, on Gowen Field, Boise, Idaho. Edwards was struck by lightning on Sept. 30, 1998, at a football practice in Inkom, Idaho. He was wearing the helmet and holding the football shown. His teammates signed the football.

S.C. Soldier’s childhood dream becomes reality
October 1, 2018 — GEORGETOWN, S.C. - His journey began in middle school. There was a television show called "Inside Combat Rescue" that he watched nonstop. He dedicated his life to it. To this day, he still has every... MORE

Spc. Cody Watkins, 125th Multi-Role Bridge Company crew member, participates in a training exercise on the Sampit River in Georgetown, South Carolina on Sept. 24, 2018. If the flooding gets as bad as expected, his fulltime mission will be on the water helping to transport emergency vehicles to and from the mainland.

N.Y. Guard Soldiers 'broke' Hindenburg Line 100 years ago
September 28, 2018 — LATHAM, N.Y. - On Sept. 29, 1918, the New York National Guard Soldiers of the Army's 27th Infantry division fought their way into the defensive works known as the Hindenburg Line. The attack did not... MORE

Soldiers of the New York National Guard's 107th Infantry Regiment, a part of the 27th Division, train with a British machine-gun armed tank during training for the assault on the Hindenburg Line during September 1918. When the attack kicked off, the 107th lost 1,000 men wounded and killed out of a strength of 1,662. The tanks that supported the attack on Sept. 29, 1918, were quickly knocked out.

Idaho Guard provides casualty support to bereaved families
September 24, 2018 — BOISE, Idaho - When tragedy hits and a Soldier dies, their family does not have to go through the bereavement process alone. The Idaho Army National Guard has 120 certified casualty notification and... MORE

The Idaho National Guard held a Veterans Day ceremony Nov. 8, 2017, at Gowen Field Memorial Park, Boise, Idaho. The Idaho Army National Guard has 120 certified casualty notification and assistance officers ready to provide immediate support to families who have lost a Soldier of the active Army, Reserve or National Guard.

Louisiana Guard, Active Component Airmen Complete Air-to-Air Integration Training

Air National Guard Leaders Host 2025 Wing Leader Fly-In

Colorado Army National Guard Conducts Aviation Training for Wildfire Season

Lt. Gen. Jon Stubbs Highlights Virginia National Guard Excellence at Military Ball

Oregon Air Guard Participates in Sentry Aloha Exercise