Guard News - The National Guard

NY Guard’s 42nd Division bloodied in battle 75 years ago
December 31, 2019 — TROY, N.Y. – In the earliest days of 1945, Soldiers of the 42nd Infantry Division, now a part of the New York Army National Guard, fought furiously against German tanks and paratroopers during... MORE

U.S. Army Soldiers of the 42nd Infantry Division prepare a defensive position at their log and dirt bunker near Kauffenheim, France, Jan. 8, 1945. The Soldiers, assigned to Company I, 242nd Regiment, held off the German offensive in Alsace, France, called Operation Nordwind without the division’s artillery or support elements. The actions of one division Soldier, Master Sgt. Vito Bertoldo, were highlighted in the 2018 Netflix documentary “Medal of Honor.”

Jordan, US train on TOW weapon system
December 31, 2019 — AMMAN, Jordan – National Guard Soldiers and the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army (JAF) trained on the heavy-duty TOW weapon system at a base outside Amman in December.U.S. Army Soldiers with Charlie... MORE

A Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army soldier looks through the scope of a BGM-71 Tube-launched, Optically tracked, Wireless-guided weapon system during a Subject Matter Expert Exchange with U.S. Army Soldiers of Charlie Company, 1st Combined Arms Battalion, 252 Armor Regiment, 30th Armored Brigade Combat Team, “Old Hickory,” North Carolina Army National Guard, coordinated by Military Engagement Team-Jordan,158th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade, Arizona Army National Guard, outside Amman, Jordan, in December 2019.

1032nd TC completes international line haul mission
December 30, 2019 — FORT PICKETT, Va. — Virginia National Guard Soldiers assigned to the Gate City-based 1032nd Transportation Company, 1030th Transportation Battalion, 329th Regional Support group, completed an... MORE

Virginia National Guard personnel and Canadian soldiers offload howitzers and other equipment from trucks Dec. 8, 2019, at Fort Pickett, Virginia. VNG Soldiers assigned to the 1032nd Transportation Company, 1030th Transportation Battalion, 329th Regional Support Group, conducted a line haul to help the Montreal-based 34th Canadian Brigade Group move equipment to Fort Pickett for a training exercise planned in January.

Kentucky Air Guard provides airlift in Italy for Mangusta 19
December 30, 2019 — PISA, Italy – More than 35 Airmen and two C-130 Hercules aircraft from the Kentucky Air National Guard's 123rd Airlift Wing provided airlift for U.S. and Italian airdrop operations throughout exercise... MORE

Members of the Italian Folgore, an paratrooper brigade from the Italian Army, execute an airdrop with members of the Kentucky Air National Guard’s 123rd Airlift Wing in Pisa, Italy, Nov. 7, 2019, as part of Mangusta 19, a bilateral exercise to promote readiness and interoperability among NATO allies.

Ohio National Guard State Partnership Program evolves
December 30, 2019 — COLUMBUS, Ohio – In 2019, the Ohio National Guard’s State Partnership Program showcased its full array of soft skills to support U.S. security cooperation objectives by building enduring relationships... MORE

From left, Capt. Trevor Ducey, former Ohio National Guard State Partnership Program director; Maj. Gen. John C. Harris Jr., Ohio adjutant general; Simona Vaclavikova, political adviser for the Ohio Adjutant General’s Department and the SPP; and 1st Sgt. Daniel Skinner, Ohio National Guard SPP coordinator.

NY National Guard provides military honors at 11,045 veteran burials
December 30, 2019 — LATHAM, N.Y. – The New York Army and Air National Guard expects to provide military honors at the burials of 11,045 veterans during 2019, according to records from their honor guard teams across the... MORE

Members of the New York Military Forces honor guard provide military honors for the funeral service of Medal of Honor recipient Sgt. Francis S. Currey at the Mt. Pleasant Cemetery in South Bethlehem, N.Y., Oct. 12, 2019. Currey, 94, from Selkirk, N.Y., died Oct. 8. He received the Medal of Honor for valor displayed as an infantryman during the Battle of the Bulge in World War II.

Guard members reflect on 2019, prepare for new decade
December 30, 2019 — ARLINGTON, Va. – From cyber missions to training with international partners, supporting the war fight and responding to natural disasters, 2019 was a busy year for the National Guard. The year began... MORE

Spc. Jerrad Nicholson, with the Indiana Army National Guard's 1st Squadron, 152nd Cavalry Regiment, leads Soldiers into a room during Slovak Shield 2019, a training exercise in Lešt, Slovakia, Nov. 10, 2019, as part of the Defense Department's State Partnership Program.

Army ROTC scholarship available for Army Guard members
December 27, 2019 — ARLINGTON, Va. – Army National Guard members taking part in ROTC are eligible to receive a scholarship covering tuition costs and other education expenses. Now in its fifth year, the Army National... MORE

U.S. Army ROTC cadets from the University of San Francisco paddle a Zodiac boat as part of U.S. Army Cadet Command's Ranger Challenge, Oct. 26, 2019, at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California.

Readiness inspection provides vital training
December 26, 2019 — CHANNEL ISLANDS AIR NATIONAL GUARD STATION, Port Hueneme, Calif. – Members of the 146th Airlift Wing, California Air National Guard, tested their ability to survive and operate in simulated base... MORE

Air National Guard Staff Sgt. Stephen Holmes from the 146th Airlift Wing’s Security Forces Squadron examines his weapon inside a modified security checkpoint during a readiness exercise at the Channel Islands Air National Guard Station, Port Hueneme, California, Nov. 14, 2019.

Christmas Eve road march honors troops overseas
December 26, 2019 — GLENS FALLS, N.Y. – New York National Guard volunteers joined hundreds of military family members, community supporters and gold star families for the annual Christmas Eve road march to support... MORE

Volunteers Sean Leombruno, right, and Melanie Howard, left, hold the banner for the Christmas Eve Road March in Glens Falls, N.Y. to support deployed troops and veterans Dec. 24, 2019. Hundreds of military families, veterans and community members joined Army and Air National Guard members and event coordinators retired Army National Guard Sgt. 1st Class Arthur Coon, second from right, and his wife, Julie, for the annual event.

Signal officer connects troops in the Middle East
December 26, 2019 — CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait – Indiana National Guard 1st Lt. Matthew Michael, Army signal officer, helps 10,000 U.S. service members stay connected as part of Task Force Spartan in the Middle East.Michael,... MORE

Indiana National Guard 1st Lt. Matthew Michael of Fort Wayne, a signal officer with the 38th Infantry Division, receives his new rank during his promotion ceremony in Saudi Arabia, Monday, Oct. 21, 2019. Michael is one of about 600 division soldiers who deployed to the Middle East in May to support Task Force Spartan, which helps strengthen defense relationships and build partner capacity within the region.

258th Field Artillery WWII vet receives France's highest honor
December 23, 2019 — OLEAN, N.Y., – Surrounded by 120 friends and family members, Charlie Brown, a 95-year old veteran of the New York Army National Guard's 258th Field Artillery Regiment, received France's highest honor... MORE

World War II veteran Charlie Brown stands with current and former members of the New York Army National Guard's 1st Battalion, 258th Field Artillery Regiment, after being presented the French Legion of Honor during a ceremony in Olean, N.Y., Dec. 20, 2019.

Guard visits rural Alaska communities to strengthen ties
December 23, 2019 — JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska – Members of the Alaska Department of Military and Veterans Affairs visited Nome Dec. 17-18 as part of the new rural operations hub concept to strengthen ties... MORE

Capt. James Tollefson, Alaska Army National Guard recruiting and retention operations officer, talks with Carol Piscoya, vice president of community services division at Kawerak Inc., at the Katirvik Cultural Center in Nome, Alaska, Dec. 18, 2019. Members of the Alaska Department of Military and Veterans Affairs visited Nomeas part of the department’s new rural operations hub concept to strengthen ties with Alaska’s rural communities.

Project PEARL: Sustainable microgrid to deliver energy assurance
December 20, 2019 — JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, Hawaii – The Hawaii Air National Guard is adopting some of the latest developments in microgrid technology.This project, announced during a blessing ceremony Dec. 17 at... MORE

Representatives of the Pacific Energy Assurance Renewables Laboratory place their hands on a symbolic mound of earth during a blessing ceremony Dec. 17, 2019, at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii. The ceremony honored a microgrid project designed to provide new layers of energy assurance and self-sustaining power sources to the 154th Wing.

NY National Guard Airmen helping NORAD track Santa this year
December 20, 2019 — ROME, N.Y – New York Air National Guardsmen and Royal Canadian Air Force personnel from the Eastern Air Defense Sector will play a key role Christmas Eve as the North American Aerospace Defense... MORE

Airmen at the Eastern Air Defense Sector (EADS) train in preparation for Santa’s Christmas Eve flight at EADS headquarters in Rome, N.Y., Dec. 17, 2019. Pictured are, from right, Senior Airman Timothy Destito of the New York Air National Guard; Capt. John Byeon, Royal Canadian Air Force, and Capt. Sarah Atherton, New York Air National Guard. Atherton and Destito are members of the 224th Air Defense Squadron and Byeon is a member of the Canadian Detachment at EADS.

NGB helps PRANG protect network control center after hurricane
December 19, 2019 — CAROLINA, Puerto Rico – The National Guard Bureau's A/6 communications directorate is helping the Puerto Rico Air National Guard's 156th Communications Flight finalize plans to move a network control... MORE

The National Guard Bureau’s A/6 communications directorate team tours the network control center at the 156th Wing, Puerto Rico Air National Guard, Dec. 10, 2019, to assess and finalize plans to move the NCC after the building it's in was severely damaged by Hurricane Maria in 2017.

NY Guard leaders learn from history to prepare to deploy
December 19, 2019 — GERMANTOWN, N.Y. – Thirty New York Army National Guard leaders learned about the demise of the Ottoman Empire, which ruled the Middle East from 1299 to 1919, to prepare for deployment to the region in... MORE

Officers and senior non-commissioned officers assigned to the New York Army National Guard's 42nd Infantry Division gather on the porch of the Central House Hotel in Germantown, N.Y., following a professional development lecture on Middle Eastern history by Bard College professor Sean McMeekin (center) Dec.13, 2019. McMeekin was asked to speak so the leaders could better understand the history of the region before the division deploys to Kuwait in 2020. The session was held in the hotel to accommodate the professor's schedule.

Volk Field evolves to continue legacy of service dating to 1888
December 19, 2019 — VOLK FIELD, Wis. – As 2019 draws to a close, so too does Volk Field Combat Readiness Training Center’s (CRTC) commemoration of its 65th year as an airbase. But Volk Field and the military reservation... MORE

1st. Lt. Jerome Volk, seen at his F-80 Shooting Star fighter jet in October 1951 while deployed in support of the Korean War. Volk, the first Wisconsin Air National Guard pilot to die in the line of duty during the Korean conflict, was shot down during a combat sortie against communist forces Nov. 7, 1951, and his remains have never been recovered. In 1957 the Wisconsin Legislature renamed the portion of Camp Williams used by the Wisconsin Air National Guard as Volk Field.

Pennsylvania Guard cyber challenge engages students
December 19, 2019 — FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa. – Soldiers with the Pennsylvania National Guard Cyber Branch and Recruiting and Retention Battalion engaged high school students in the new Wi-Fighter cyber challenge Dec. 12... MORE

Soldiers with the Pennsylvania National Guard Cyber Branch and Recruiting and Retention Battalion engaged a group of 18 high school students in the new Wi-Fighter cyber challenge Dec. 12 at DeSales University in Center Valley, Pa. The winning team from Monroe Career and Technical Institute from right to left is: Chase Blecker, Rocco Susinskas, Jordan McGrath, and Liam Travers.

Florida Youth ChalleNGe changes lives for the better
December 18, 2019 — ORANGE PARK, Fla. – On Dec. 17 at the Thrasher-Horne Center, 144 cadets of class 37 of the Florida Youth ChalleNGe Academy completed the first stage of their journey toward a successful future.The... MORE

Florida Youth ChalleNGe Academy class 37 valedictorian Michael Caldwell from Clearwater addresses his fellow cadets during their graduation ceremony Dec. 17 at Thrasher-Horne Center in Orange Park. Caldwell joined the program as a sophomore at risk of failing, and after enduring a rigorous five-and-a-half-month residential phase, he now has his GED and is looking forward to attending community college.

Remains of World War II Airman Returned Home

Tennessee Guard Airmen Awarded Distinguished Flying Cross

New York Airmen Bring Holiday Cheer to Hurricane Victims While Training

New York Air National Guard Honors President Martin Van Buren

Robot Boosts Louisiana Guard Civil Support Team Readiness