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Archive: May, 2009

New York Air Guardsmen stay on alert to save lives
May 8, 2009
First Lt. Brent McCall, 101st Expeditionary Rescue Squadron combat rescue officer, and Tech. Sgt. Jedediah Smith, 101st ERQS pararescueman, load up their gear for a training mission in Northeastern Afghanistan, April 20. In addition to an M-4 assault rifle, combat medical gear and body armor, Sergeant Smith also packs his four-year-old daughter Mia's pre-school class teddy bear. The seven-year New York Air National Guardsman said he brings the little guy along with him on all his missions and writes letters to her school on behalf of the bear. "He pretty much goes everywhere I go," Sergeant Smith said, including the eight combat search and rescue missions he's done since he deployed here.
Guard mom sacrifices tradition for country
May 8, 2009
Army Sgt. 1st Class Angela Amundson, left, discusses correct wording for awards with one of her soldiers at Contingency Operating Base Basra, Iraq, May 6, 2009. The mother of two will spend Mother's Day helping other deployed mothers observe the day.
Software proves effective in avoiding aircraft crashes
May 7, 2009
Vaughn retires after 40 years in Army Guard
May 7, 2009
Lt. Gen. Clyde A. Vaughn, director of the Army National Guard, listens as Gen. Craig McKinley, chief of the National Guard Bureau, makes his remarks during Vaughn's retirement ceremony May 6, 2009 at the Army National Guard Readiness Center in Arlington, Va.
MAFFS training prepares units for upcoming fire season
May 7, 2009
Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve units converged on Tucson, Ariz., in May to take part in Modular Airborne Firefighting System (MAFFS) certification and training 2009. MAFFS is an important and effective tool used to fight wildfires nationwide and is placed onboard the C-130 Hercules aircraft. Four units across the country continue the MAFFS legacy which began in the early 1970s; the 153rd Airlift Wing of the Wyoming Air National Guard, the 145th Airlift Wing of the North Carolina Air National Guard, the 146th Airlift Wing of the California Air National Guard, and the 302nd Airlift Wing, and Air Force Reserve unit based at Peterson Air Force Base, Colo.
Oregon counterdrug team completes inter-agency training
May 7, 2009
Members of the Oregon National Guard's Counterdrug Support Program put their light armored vehicle through its paces at the Rilea Training Site, in Warrenton, Ore., May 5. Soldiers and airmen trained on the LAV with members of the Salem Police during an inter-agency event.
Utah Air Guardsman rides along with AirMed
May 7, 2009
Staff Sgt. Alan Reynolds of the 151st Medical Group of the Utah Air National Guard helps air paramedic Tom Robertson unload equipment from a Bell 430 AirMed helicopter into the Vernal, Utah hospital. Sergeant Reynolds is one of 19 Utah Air Guard medics, who are participating in a special ride-along program with the University of Utah AirMed unit.
Keystone Soldiers, Iraqi police focus on Taji market security
May 7, 2009
Spc. Adam Feldon, center, talks with an Iraqi boy, May 4, as a patrol of Pennsylvania Army National Guard Soldiers and Iraqi police officers moves through Taji market, north of Baghdad. The Keystone Guardsmen are from Company C, 1st Battalion, 112th Infantry Regiment, 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team.
CNGB endorses 'Continuum of Service' program
May 6, 2009
The Continuum of Service video explains this program designed to enable the accession, retention and transition of members of the Total Force components through integrated Air Force personnel management policies.
Better-equipped National Guard still eyes critical shortages
May 6, 2009
Maj. Gen. Raymond W. Carpenter, acting deputy director of the Army National Guard, and Lt. Gen. Harry M. Wyatt III, director of the Air National Guard, prepare to testify before the House Armed Services Committee Air and Land Forces Subcommittee on May 5, 2009.
Air Guardsmen train next generation of active duty pilots
May 6, 2009
1st Lt. Scott Kotowski (right) reviews aircraft maintenance records with crew chiefs Senior Airman Jacob Rocha (middle) and Senior Airman Chris Wilson prior to flying a training sortie April 23 at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz. All three Airmen are assigned to the 149th Fighter Wing in San Antonio, and are participating in Exercise Coronet Cactus. Lieutenant Kotowski is a student pilot.
Camp Williams gets four new fire trucks
May 6, 2009
The Utah National Guard accepted delivery of four new fire trucks for Camp Williams on April 29, 2009 at the Draper, Utah headquarters. Each truck will be staffed with two firefighters and an engine boss, trained and selected from among the 60 Utah National Guard Soldiers, who are currently red-card certified to fight wildland fires.
Eight states participate in CST regional exercise
May 6, 2009
Sgt. 1st Class Ryan Van Damme, a decontamination noncommissioned officer for the 14th Civil Support Team of the Connecticut National Guard, checks Sgt. John Barton, a survey team member, for contaminates after Barton returned from surveying the inside of a local school in Groton, Conn., on May 5, 2009.
VA emphasizes education before post-9/11 GI Bill switch
May 5, 2009
Oregon Guard sends off first group from 41st brigade
May 5, 2009
Col. Dan Hokanson, commander of the 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Oregon Army National Guard, prepares for his unit's mobilization ceremony at the Portland Coliseum in Portland, Ore., May 2. Nearly 2,700 soldiers will mobilize in communities throughout Oregon, giving residents of Bend, Medford, Eugene and Portland, a chance to send off Oregon's soldiers in what is the largest deployment of Oregonians since WWII.
Kentucky Guard supports historic Derby run
May 5, 2009
Soldiers and airmen of the Ky. National Guard practice for their duties as the Winner's Circle security contingent at Churchill Downs for the Kentucky Oaks and Derby horse races on Friday and Saturday, May 1-2, 2009.
Construction begins on $14.56 million pararescue facility
May 5, 2009
Michael Jacobs, chairman of the Board of the Friends of the 106th, Col. Michael F. Canders of the 106th Rescue Wing, Congressman Timothy Bishop, New York State Assemblyman Fred Thiele, Maj. John D. McElroy of the 103rd Rescue Squadron, and Keith Wood, supervisor for Racanelli Construction, break ground for a new building to house the 103rd Rescue Squadron at F.S. Gabreski Air National Guard Base in Westhampton Beach, N.Y., on May 2, 2009.
Air Force, Navy combine for air combat skills training
May 5, 2009
Aircraft maintenance airmen from the Air National Guard's 115th Fighter Wing in Madison, Wis. worked along side their naval counterparts from the Strike Fighter Squadron 2 (VFA-2), Naval Air Station Lemoore, Calif. Staff Sgt. David Bizefski, an F-16C Fighting Falcon crew chief from the 115th FW, and Petty Officer 3rd Class Sammy Holmes, aviation administration from VFA-2, share experiences during a two-week air-to-air combat skills training mission at NAS Key West, Fla.
Holocaust survivor tells her story
May 5, 2009
Elzbieta Strassburger recounts her experiences as a child in Poland during the years of the Holocaust during a presentation at the Army National Guard Readiness Center in Arlington, Va., Thursday, April 30, 2009. Strassburger, born in 1938 in Poland, spent several years living with her mother under an assumed name before finally being reunited with her father in Italy after the war. The family emigrated to the United States where they settled with an aunt, the only other family member to survive. Strassburger, who went on to earn a master's degree in social work and work with troubled children, volunteers at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., where she speaks about her experiences as a child.
Guard assists elderly couple on 'Rebuilding Day'
May 4, 2009
National Guard Soldiers, Airmen and civilians from the National Capital Region repair a home in Nanjemoy, Md., April 25 during a Christmas in April volunteer project that assisted an elderly couple on National Rebuilding Day. It was the 15th year that Guardmembers volunteered in the event, which takes place annually on the last Saturday in April.