New Hampshire National Guard - Winter 2011 - Keep Trees
New Hampshire National Guard - Winter 2011 - Keep Trees
New Hampshire National Guard - Winter 2011 - Keep Trees
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Grassroots<br />
diplomacy<br />
with El Salvador
The Honorable John H. Lynch<br />
Governor of <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong><br />
Major General William Reddel III<br />
Adjutant General of the<br />
N.H. <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong><br />
Brigadier General Craig Bennett<br />
Commander of the N.H. Army <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong><br />
Brigadier General Carolyn Protzmann<br />
Commander of the N.H. Air <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong><br />
Major Greg Heilshorn<br />
State Public Affairs Officer, N.H. <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong><br />
First Sergeant Michael Daigle<br />
Deputy State Public Affairs Officer,<br />
N.H. <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong><br />
Captain Sue Lamb<br />
Public Affairs Officer, 157th Air Refueling Wing,<br />
N.H. Air <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong><br />
STAFF<br />
114th Public Affairs Detachment,<br />
N.H. Army <strong>Guard</strong>, and<br />
157th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs Office<br />
and Communications Squadron,<br />
N.H. Air <strong>Guard</strong><br />
Bob Ulin<br />
Publisher<br />
Marie Lundstrom<br />
Editor<br />
Gloria Schein<br />
Graphic Artist<br />
Chris Kersbergen<br />
Darrell George<br />
Advertising Sales<br />
Toll Free: (866) 562-9300 • Fax: (907) 562-9311<br />
Web: www.AQPpublishing.com<br />
The <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine is a<br />
quarterly, joint publication for the soldiers and airmen<br />
serving in the N.H. <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>, as well as their families<br />
and retirees. It is posted to the World Wide Web at<br />
https://www.nh.ngb.army.mil.<br />
The <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine is a<br />
commercial enterprise publication produced in partnership<br />
with the State Public Affairs Office, <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong><br />
<strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>, 1 Minuteman Way, Concord, NH 03301;<br />
and AQP Publishing Inc., 8537 Corbin Drive, Anchorage,<br />
AK 99507.<br />
Everything advertised in this publication shall be made<br />
available for purchase, use or patronage without regard to<br />
race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin,<br />
age, marital status, physical handicap, political affiliation,<br />
or any other non-merit factor of the purchaser, user or<br />
patron. A confirmed violation of this policy of equal<br />
opportunity by an advertiser shall result in the refusal to<br />
print advertising from that source.<br />
Views and opinions expressed herein are not<br />
necessarily the official views of the departments of the<br />
Army and Air Force, or the State of <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong>. All<br />
photos are the property of the N.H. <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> unless<br />
otherwise credited. Circulation: 3,000<br />
How to reach us: We welcome letters to the editor.<br />
They must include the writer’s full name and mailing<br />
address.<br />
<strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong> / <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine<br />
Wearestrongerandwiser................ 2<br />
Agoodstand-in ........................ 3<br />
54th Troop Command hones<br />
marksmanship.......................... 5<br />
Dunkelberger makes general,<br />
assistant to USAF chief nurse. . . . . . . . . . . . . 7<br />
Dispensing with the particulars . . . . . . . . . . . 7<br />
Performing with steady aplomb . . . . . . . . . . . 8<br />
QuestforGermangold................. 11<br />
Salvadoran partnership<br />
continuestoevolve..................... 12<br />
Morethanwilling...................... 14<br />
MEDEVAC crew receives<br />
prestigiousaward...................... 15<br />
Onetoughmudder..................... 17<br />
Jumping on the back of a speeding train. . . 19<br />
Backonsolidground................... 20<br />
Army Promotions & Awards . . . . . . . . . . . . 23<br />
Air Promotions & Awards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24<br />
Submissions: We encourage story and photo<br />
submissions. Please send articles and photos with<br />
cutlines to:<br />
On the cover: State<br />
Command Sgt. Maj. John<br />
Nanof visits with a group<br />
of students during a<br />
break in classes from the<br />
San Jose Villanueva<br />
school in El Salvador on<br />
Feb. 15, <strong>2011</strong>. The school<br />
has established a longterm<br />
relationship with<br />
Bow High School in<br />
Bow, N.H. through the<br />
NHNG State Partnership<br />
Program with El<br />
Salvador. Photo courtesy of<br />
Maj. Brian Fernandes, NHARNG<br />
<strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
NHNG Website: https://www.nh.ngb.army.mil<br />
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/<strong>New</strong>-<strong>Hampshire</strong>-<strong>National</strong>-<strong>Guard</strong>/101586059766<br />
<strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine<br />
State Public Affairs Office, N.H. <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong><br />
1 Minuteman Way • Concord, NH 03301<br />
(603) 225-1340<br />
3<br />
12<br />
20<br />
1
We are stronger and wiser<br />
By Maj. Gen. William Reddel III, Adjutant General of the <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong><br />
On Dec. 13, <strong>2011</strong>, our <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> celebrated 375 years<br />
of dedicated service to our individual states and nation. From<br />
King Philip’s War in 1675 to the current struggle in Afghanistan,<br />
<strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>smen have fought bravely in every major<br />
American conflict.<br />
<strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>smen Sgt. Ian James of Pittsfield and Master<br />
Sgt. Marc Gagnon of Manchester join N.H. Gov. John Lynch to cut a birthday<br />
cake during a ceremony Dec. 13 at the Statehouse in Concord to celebrate the<br />
375th anniversary of the <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>. Photo by 1st Sgt. Mike Daigle, Deputy PAO<br />
LIKE A GOOD NEIGHBOR<br />
2<br />
At home, they have responded to crises, saving lives,<br />
protecting property, and giving a much-needed sense of comfort<br />
to their fellow citizens.<br />
The <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> as a militia for selfdefense<br />
can be traced back to 1623 and the first settlements near<br />
the mouth of the Piscataqua River in Portsmouth.<br />
Since 9/11, more than 2,000 <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>smen<br />
have deployed overseas in support of combat and peacekeeping<br />
missions under Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom and <strong>New</strong><br />
Dawn. Collectively, they account for a Silver Star, several Bronze<br />
Stars and Army Commendation Medals with Valor Devices,<br />
more than 100 Combat Infantry and Combat Action Badges,<br />
and more than 100 Purple Hearts.<br />
Four have paid the ultimate sacrifice. Sgt. Jeremiah Holmes,<br />
Spc. Alan Burgess, Sgt. David Stelmat and Cpl. Scott Dimond<br />
were killed in action.<br />
Domestically, N.H. citizen soldiers and airmen have mobilized<br />
under Operation Noble Eagle, aided the victims of floods<br />
and ice storms, and rescued lost hikers in the White Mountains.<br />
They have stood up a Civil Support Team that has responded to<br />
chemical and biological emergencies, and developed a proficiency<br />
for nation-building establishing a model State Partnership<br />
Program with the Central American country of El Salvador.<br />
The last 10 years of our history have been the most dynamic<br />
on record, forever changing the way we operate. We are stronger<br />
and wiser. We have a greater appreciation of who we are and<br />
what we stand for. The connection to our communities has grown<br />
deeper, and we are as committed to the ideals of our state and<br />
nation as the first minutemen were nearly four centuries ago.<br />
Our legacy continues to grow richer thanks to your selfless<br />
service and the support and sacrifice of your families, employers<br />
and communities. You are of the One Percent a free society has<br />
always depended on. ❖<br />
From right, Sgt. Robert McKay and Pvt. Derek Champagne of the 237th Military Police Company, <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> Army <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>, speak with a Litchfield, N.H.,<br />
resident during a health and wellness check Nov. 2. More than 80 percent of the town was without power as a result of the Halloween nor’easter.<br />
Photo by Staff Sgt. Whitney Hughes, 114th PAD<br />
<strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine / <strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
A GOOD<br />
STAND-IN<br />
Story and photos by Maj. Greg Heilshorn,<br />
State PAO<br />
If Santa ever needs a stand-in, chances<br />
are Gil Colon will be on his short list.<br />
For nearly three decades, the <strong>New</strong><br />
<strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> warrant officer<br />
has volunteered to support a charity that<br />
collects toys for thousands of disadvantaged<br />
boys and girls. Fittingly coined<br />
“Operation Santa Claus,” the program is<br />
the annual holiday cause of the State<br />
Employees Association of <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong>.<br />
Each December, the SEA partners with<br />
the <strong>Guard</strong> to distribute donated gifts to<br />
11 locations across the Granite state.<br />
Colon, of Rochester, started as a<br />
driver and worked his way up to state<br />
coordinator, overseeing an effort that has<br />
swelled to include more than 100 citizen<br />
soldiers and airmen.<br />
“I love this,” said Colon, during what<br />
would be his last Operation Santa Claus<br />
on Dec. 13. Colon retired from the<br />
military at the end of the month. “It’s one<br />
of the nicest things we do as an organization.<br />
People see us helping for storms and<br />
disaster relief, but when we can go back<br />
into our communities like this, it really<br />
gets to the heart of who we are and why<br />
we are here.”<br />
Over the years, Colon has taken a<br />
postman-like approach to his responsibilities,<br />
ensuring the N.H. <strong>Guard</strong> lives up<br />
to its national creed of “Always Ready.<br />
Always There.”<br />
“Through all kinds of weather, snow<br />
and ice storms and bitter cold, we never<br />
lost a package and always got the toys<br />
there on time,” he said.<br />
Jane Lyman, a longtime civilian<br />
volunteer from Silver Lake, said the N.H.<br />
<strong>Guard</strong> has been crucial to the success of<br />
the program, which started in 1961.<br />
“Without the <strong>Guard</strong>, I don’t know how<br />
we would get all these gifts to where they<br />
need to go,” she said. “Every child needs<br />
to have a Christmas.”<br />
They are children who have lost their<br />
parents to illnesses or accidents, according<br />
to the SEA. Some have been abandoned<br />
or have been removed from abusive<br />
homes. Other children have both parents,<br />
but their families have been overwhelmed<br />
by job loss, foreclosure and homelessness.<br />
Lyman’s fondest memory is of a 15year-old<br />
boy who had lost his parents and<br />
was being taken care of by his grand-<br />
Chief Warrant Officer Gil Colon displays a citation from Gov. John Lynch, who recognized his many years of<br />
involvement with Operation Santa Claus on Dec. 13 in Concord.<br />
mother. “He wanted nothing for himself<br />
and everything for his grandmother,” she<br />
said. “We got as many things as we could<br />
think of in a box for his grandmother and<br />
then filled another box for him.”<br />
Another volunteer, Dianne Blodgett of<br />
Concord, recalled a 3-year-old asking for<br />
a blanket rather than a toy, and another<br />
child “who just wanted chocolate milk.”<br />
“I wish I could be there on Christmas<br />
Day to see them open their presents,”<br />
Blodgett said.<br />
At an otherwise nondescript state warehouse<br />
near the Greyhound bus station in<br />
Concord, about 50 N.H. <strong>Guard</strong>smen<br />
loaded toys and bikes into a small convoy<br />
of Army trucks. Maj. Gen. William Reddel,<br />
the Adjutant General of the N.H. <strong>Guard</strong>,<br />
along with the deputy adjutant, Brig. Gen.<br />
Carolyn Protzmann, joined soldiers and<br />
airmen to form a green and tan bucket<br />
brigade. Gov. John Lynch was on hand as<br />
well to thank everyone for their support.<br />
“It’s good to help out with all the<br />
different locations,” said Staff Sgt. Michael<br />
Morris of Berwick, Maine, an active duty<br />
aircraft mechanic with the 64th Air<br />
Refueling Squadron at Pease Air <strong>National</strong><br />
<strong>Guard</strong> Base.<br />
Sgt. Jason Burpee of Hooksett, a<br />
soldier with the 3643rd Brigade Support<br />
Battalion, said, “I grew up in a thrifty<br />
household. I grew up not knowing what it<br />
was like to not always get what you<br />
wanted.”<br />
Both were first-time volunteers,<br />
something Colon likes to see as he bids<br />
farewell to a mission he helped build,<br />
one toy at a time.<br />
“Others will step up,” Colon said,<br />
moments after Lynch presented him with<br />
a citation for his years of service with<br />
Operation Santa Claus. “It’s what we do.<br />
It’s what we are best at.” ❖<br />
A bucket brigade of N.H. <strong>Guard</strong>smen load toys at a<br />
warehouse in Concord on Dec.13 in support of<br />
Operation Santa Claus.<br />
<strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong> / <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine 3
54th Troop Command hones marksmanship<br />
By Spc. Margaret Taylor, 114th PAD<br />
On one range, a Humvee-mounted MK-19 belched rounds<br />
into the still, foggy morning air. Not far away, the new M-320<br />
grenade launcher debuted by spewing orange chalk-filled rounds<br />
at targets downrange. And at another site nearby, M-240B and<br />
M-249 machine guns chattered side by side, toppling targets up<br />
and down a tree-lined hillside.<br />
These were only some of the weapons various units in the<br />
<strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> Army <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> brought to the ranges<br />
at Fort Devens, Mass., for their annual weapons qualification<br />
on Oct. 1-3.<br />
In attendance were about 370 soldiers from the 54th Troop<br />
Command, including the 237th Military Police Company,<br />
160th Engineers Detachment, C Company, 3/172nd Infantry<br />
Battalion (Mountain), C Company, 2/238th Aviation Regiment<br />
(MEDEVAC), 169th Aviation, and the 114th Public Affairs<br />
Detachment. These soldiers had an opportunity to train on<br />
handguns, rifles, grenade launchers and a variety of crew-served<br />
weapons.<br />
“There have been plenty of rounds<br />
and plenty of range time.<br />
We have had a lot of trigger time,<br />
and as infantrymen that’s what we need.”<br />
– Staff Sgt. Derek Downey<br />
“The goal of the weekend was to hone soldiers’ perishable<br />
skills,” said 1st Sgt. Robert Rogers, first sergeant of the 237th<br />
MP Company. “Its purpose was also to introduce them to new<br />
equipment and work out the kinks.”<br />
While weapons proficiency was a major logistical objective,<br />
the weekend brought about several other triumphs as well. For<br />
example, Mountain Company soldiers, were able to train on the<br />
M-320, a brand new weapon system that will replace the M-203<br />
grenade launcher.<br />
The new weapon is no longer attached to soldiers’ M-4 rifles,<br />
and is much more versatile as an independent weapon, soldiers<br />
said. During its training, the company was able to qualify 21<br />
soldiers on the new weapon, despite their first time firing it.<br />
“They pick it up really quick,” said Staff Sgt. Derek Downey,<br />
Mountain Company, 3rd platoon sergeant. “There have been<br />
plenty of rounds and plenty of range time. We have had a lot of<br />
trigger time, and as infantrymen that’s what we need.”<br />
Qualifications began almost as soon as units arrived at Fort<br />
Devens and lasted through the afternoon and into early evening.<br />
Once darkness fell, soldiers engaged in a night-fire exercise,<br />
shooting targets lit only by intermittent strobes. The following<br />
day afforded many soldiers the opportunity to cross-train.<br />
“There was a good mix of skills,” said Maj. Melinda Morin,<br />
executive officer for the 54th TC, who played a key role in<br />
organizing the weekend. “The diversity of the troops gathered<br />
here was fantastic.”<br />
<strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong> / <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine<br />
Staff Sgt. Peter Miner, a squad leader with the 237th MP Company, demonstrates<br />
a technique for dislodging jammed ammunition from an MK 19 grenade launcher<br />
at Fort Devens, Mass., Oct. 2. Photo by Spc. Courtney Selig, 114th PAD<br />
The firing line also brought together units from different<br />
states and services. The Rhode Island Air <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>’s<br />
143rd Airlift Wing Security Force shared a range with Mountain<br />
Company, and both welcomed any soldier or airman who wished<br />
to train on their M-240B or M-249 machine guns.<br />
Camaraderie was a natural by-product of the weekend<br />
training.<br />
“He’s got my back, and I’ve got his,” said Spc. Jeff Flanagan<br />
of his assistant gunner, Pvt. Joe Green, after they qualified on<br />
the M-240B. “It’s as simple as that.” ❖<br />
5
RAMP UP<br />
From left, Maj. Heidi Lelke, Lt. Col. Michael Blair and Tech. Sgt. Richard Blais, a tanker crew with the 157th Air Refueling Wing, consult their flight manual during a<br />
weekend exercise Oct. 22, <strong>2011</strong>, at Pease Air <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Base. Photo by Staff Sgt. Curtis J. Lenz, 157th ARW PA<br />
6<br />
<strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine / <strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
Dunkelberger makes general, assistant to<br />
USAF chief nurse<br />
Col. Gretchen Dunkelberger of Eliot,<br />
Maine, has been selected to serve as the<br />
Air <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>’s assistant to the U.S.<br />
Air Force chief nurse and for promotion<br />
to the rank of brigadier general.<br />
The former commander of the 157th<br />
Medical Group at Pease Air <strong>National</strong><br />
<strong>Guard</strong> Base in <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> will be<br />
responsible for advising Maj. Gen.<br />
Kimberly Siniscalchi on all programs and<br />
policies related to recruitment, training,<br />
utilization, deployment, and retention of<br />
the nearly 3,000 commissioned and<br />
enlisted nursing personnel in the Air<br />
<strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>.<br />
Dunkelberger most recently served as<br />
the Air <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> assistant to the<br />
commander, 59th Medical Wing, Wilford<br />
Hall Medical Center, Lackland Air Force<br />
Base, Texas. She is currently leading two<br />
exploratory teams dealing with national<br />
access to health care for the Air Reserve<br />
Component and psychological health<br />
within the Reserve Component (both<br />
AFRES and ANG).<br />
She earned a bachelor of science<br />
degree in nursing from the University<br />
of <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> in 1983 and joined<br />
the U.S. Air Force in October of the<br />
same year. ❖<br />
Dispensing with the particulars<br />
By Fallon Reed, Strategic <strong>National</strong> Stockpile Coordinator, <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> Department of Safety, Homeland Security and Emergency Management<br />
The <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> Air <strong>Guard</strong>, in<br />
conjunction with the Departments of<br />
Safety, Health and Human Services, conducted<br />
the 2nd annual State Emergency<br />
Responder and Volunteer Point of<br />
Dispensing, or SERV POD, exercise<br />
at Pease Air <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong><br />
Base on Nov. 5.<br />
The exercise was held<br />
during the <strong>Guard</strong>’s drill<br />
weekend and provided<br />
seasonal influenza vaccine<br />
to more than 500 airmen in<br />
less than two hours.<br />
SERV PODs are<br />
designed to vaccinate or<br />
provide prophylaxis to statelevel<br />
emergency responders,<br />
mission critical personnel<br />
and their families in the first<br />
few hours of a public health<br />
emergency requiring mass<br />
prophylaxis.<br />
SERV PODs would be<br />
utilized to ensure that<br />
<strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>, state police,<br />
state EOC staff and others<br />
would be able to continue<br />
with their response efforts<br />
and ensure that their health<br />
is not at risk during the<br />
event. There are two SERV<br />
PODs identified with<br />
physical locations in the<br />
state, and a third “mobile” unit capable<br />
of responding to any place in <strong>New</strong><br />
<strong>Hampshire</strong>. The Pease site is staffed and<br />
managed by the 157th Medical Group.<br />
The exercise also provided the opportunity<br />
to use the state’s new Inventory<br />
Management and Patient Tracking system<br />
or IRMS. Utilizing the system in a controlled<br />
environment such as the SERV<br />
POD exercise allows for the system to be<br />
tested and to ensure that it will work<br />
appropriately during an emergency. ❖<br />
Capt. Paul Marcus gives a shot to an airman at the 2nd annual State Emergency Responder and Volunteer Point of<br />
Dispensing, or SERV POD, exercise at Pease Air <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Base on Nov. 5. Courtesy photo<br />
<strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong> / <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine 7
Performing with steady aplomb Within 90 minutes, the <strong>New</strong> England<br />
Story and photos by Spc. Margaret Taylor,<br />
114th PAD<br />
At first, there wasn’t much to look at<br />
– a pile of concrete rubble here, a bunch<br />
of white trucks with white trailers there,<br />
and a big black tarp covering a strip of<br />
ground in the middle. Several dozen<br />
<strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>smen, their bright orange<br />
vests in stark contrast to the bleak October<br />
landscape, waited for a signal.<br />
Then, at a word, a hailstorm of activity<br />
broke out. Citizen soldiers and airmen<br />
from <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong>, Maine and Rhode<br />
Island emptied out the trailers and transformed<br />
the bleak field into something<br />
out of the next apocalyptic movie, sans<br />
zombies. Within a half hour, several white<br />
and yellow decontamination tents – most<br />
set aside for victims but a few for rescuers<br />
8<br />
as well – had been set up around the black<br />
tarp. Then, while some service members<br />
ran water hoses from portable generators<br />
and water sources to the tents, others<br />
began donning their white hazardous<br />
material suits.<br />
Once validated,<br />
the <strong>New</strong> England CERFP<br />
will be capable of<br />
responding to an emergency<br />
anywhere in the region –<br />
even across the nation,<br />
if necessary –<br />
in less than eight hours.<br />
Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear<br />
Enhanced Response Force Package<br />
(CERFP), comprising 200 <strong>Guard</strong>smen,<br />
was ready to tackle whatever hazmat<br />
catastrophe might come.<br />
As part of a five-day training exercise<br />
culminating in a federal validation, the<br />
<strong>New</strong> England CERFP put on a public<br />
display of its capabilities for state and<br />
regional military leaders at the <strong>New</strong><br />
<strong>Hampshire</strong> Fire Academy in Concord<br />
Oct. 26. The exhibition involved setting<br />
up decontamination and medical units,<br />
and working through a disaster-relief<br />
scenario with about 100 “victims.”<br />
The purpose of the training was to<br />
acquire certification, to practice with units<br />
from other states and to hone emergency<br />
response skills, said Capt. Darrell Davis<br />
Soldiers with the Search and Extraction team, 861st Engineer Company, Rhode Island <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>, prepare to move a victim away from a disaster site during a<br />
training exercise at the <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> Fire Academy in Concord, N.H., Oct. 26.<br />
<strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine / <strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
Airmen from the 143rd Medical Group, Rhode Island Air <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>, help a victim move from a gurney to the start of the decontamination line during a training<br />
exercise at the <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> Fire Academy in Concord, Oct. 26<br />
of <strong>New</strong>castle, the commander of the<br />
NHNG’s team.<br />
Many soldiers in C Company, 172nd<br />
Infantry Regiment (Mountain), for<br />
example, are EMTs or firefighters in their<br />
civilian jobs, Davis said. Participation in<br />
the CERFP permits these soldiers to<br />
broaden their working knowledge as well<br />
as share it with teammates who come from<br />
different areas of expertise.<br />
“It’s great for unit cohesion,” said Sgt.<br />
Shannon Kulakowski of Epping, the noncommissioned<br />
officer in charge of the<br />
NHNG team. “With us helping out in hazmat<br />
cases, it frees up local first responders<br />
so they can keep doing their jobs.”<br />
Once validated, the <strong>New</strong> England<br />
CERFP will be capable of responding to<br />
an emergency anywhere in the region –<br />
even across the nation, if necessary – in<br />
less than eight hours.<br />
Not long after the decontamination<br />
area was established, soldiers from<br />
861st Engineer Company, 56th Troop<br />
Command, Rhode Island Army <strong>National</strong><br />
<strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong> / <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine<br />
<strong>Guard</strong>, began their search and extraction<br />
mission, combing through the rubble – in<br />
the scenario, the site of a bomb blast – for<br />
survivors. Those victims able to walk were<br />
quickly moved from the hot zone, or the<br />
source of the incident and contaminated<br />
area around it, into the first tent (the<br />
warm zone) to begin decontamination.<br />
Hazmat-suited soldiers from the<br />
NHNG processed the victims one by one,<br />
helping them remove their contaminated<br />
clothing, wash off any residual toxins and<br />
move across the black tarp to the critical<br />
or noncritical care medical tents (the cold<br />
zone) for additional treatment.<br />
Next door, civil engineers from the<br />
143rd Airlift Wing, R.I. Air <strong>National</strong><br />
<strong>Guard</strong>, performed the same operation,<br />
only with victims who were unable to walk.<br />
They were transported from the hot zone<br />
in gurneys, through triage and onto a<br />
conveyor-belt system through the warm<br />
zone. Once out of the warm zone, the<br />
victims were wheeled to the cold zone<br />
tents manned by members of the 157th<br />
Staff Sgt. Abel Emanuelli of Derry, N.H., an infantryman<br />
with C Company, 172nd Infantry Regiment<br />
(Mountain), <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> Army <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>,<br />
helps a victim through the decontamination line<br />
during a training exercise at the <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong><br />
Fire Academy in Concord, Oct. 26.<br />
Medical Group, N.H. Air <strong>National</strong><br />
<strong>Guard</strong>. In an actual situation, injured<br />
victims would have been transported from<br />
there to local civilian medical facilities. ❖<br />
9
Quest for German<br />
GOLD<br />
Story and photo by Spc. Margaret Taylor, 114th PAD<br />
“You can do it!” “Come on,<br />
Taylor!” “You’re almost there!”<br />
The cheers of the soldiers I’d<br />
just met the day before carried<br />
me over the finish line with a few<br />
minutes to spare. I took a few<br />
more wobbly steps and gratefully<br />
dropped the 35-pound pack I’d<br />
been carrying for the last 7.5<br />
miles. I was the last to finish, and<br />
I didn’t expect the welcoming party.<br />
Twelve soldiers from various units in the <strong>New</strong><br />
<strong>Hampshire</strong> Army <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>, two from the 157th<br />
Airlift Wing, N.H. Air <strong>Guard</strong>, and I spent much of<br />
Oct. 13-14 striving for the German Armed Force<br />
Military Proficiency Badge at the University of <strong>New</strong><br />
<strong>Hampshire</strong> in Durham and at Pease Air <strong>National</strong><br />
<strong>Guard</strong> Base in Portsmouth. This award is one of the<br />
few foreign badges U.S. service members are allowed<br />
to earn and wear, and the process to gain it is arduous,<br />
to say the least. But receiving an award is not the sole<br />
benefit of the event.<br />
“It definitely boosts morale,” said Sgt. 1st Class<br />
Sage Ladieu, an attrition and retention NCO from<br />
Center Barnstead and assistant facilitator of the<br />
event.<br />
Retired Maj. Robert Sanders of Kennebunkport,<br />
Maine, and a senior military science instructor for<br />
UNH Army ROTC, and the event’s primary facilitator,<br />
learned of the badge during one of his several tours of<br />
duty overseas when he was stationed in Germany. He<br />
competed in the event during that tour and was<br />
awarded a badge.<br />
Not many soldiers get a chance nowadays to earn<br />
a foreign award, Sanders said. Providing his cadets<br />
with an opportunity to experience the event, maybe<br />
earn a badge and put their soldier skills, agility,<br />
endurance and strength to the test was something he<br />
really wanted to do.<br />
After receiving the necessary certification from<br />
German headquarters in the winter of 2010, Sanders<br />
was able to set up the first competition in <strong>New</strong><br />
<strong>Hampshire</strong> in May <strong>2011</strong> for his cadets. This piqued<br />
such an interest that he sponsored another one later<br />
in May, opening it to <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>smen.<br />
The next German badge qualification event is<br />
scheduled for spring 2012. ❖<br />
Master Sgt. Lore Ford competes in the swim portion of the German<br />
Armed Forces Military Proficiency Badge test Oct 13-14, <strong>2011</strong>, at the<br />
University of <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong>.<br />
<strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong> / <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine 11
Salvadoran partnership continues to evolve<br />
Maj. Gen. Mark Sears, the deputy commander for mobility and reserve affairs at U.S. Southern Command, makes a point during a conversation with Brig. Gen. Jamie<br />
Parada, the vice chief of the Salvadoran Joint General Staff, and Col. Carlos Mena of the Salvadoran Air Force, at Pease Air <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Base, <strong>New</strong>ington,<br />
Aug. 13, <strong>2011</strong>. Photo by Capt. Rob Burnham, NHNG PA<br />
By Capt. Robert Burnham, NHNG PA<br />
A delegation of El Salvador’s military<br />
high command met with <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong><br />
<strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> leadership last August to<br />
discuss disaster preparedness during a<br />
weeklong visit to the Granite State.<br />
“We have a domestic response mission,<br />
and we need to enhance our techniques in<br />
responding for the future,” said Brig. Gen.<br />
Jamie Parada, the vice chief of the<br />
Salvadoran military’s Joint General Staff.<br />
Discussions also focused on the future<br />
of the military’s 12-year-old relationship<br />
with the N.H. <strong>Guard</strong>, established in 2000<br />
under the <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>’s State<br />
Partnership Program, which now touts<br />
more than 60 such partnerships between<br />
state <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>s and countries in<br />
Eastern Europe, Africa, and Central and<br />
South America. The two parties agreed to<br />
incorporate more disaster response-related<br />
training into their program, which averages<br />
10 to 15 exchanges or events annually.<br />
In January, a contingent of senior leaders<br />
from the N.H. <strong>Guard</strong> were scheduled to<br />
travel to El Salvador, a five-hour flight<br />
12<br />
Brig. Gen. Craig Bennett, commander of the N.H. Army <strong>Guard</strong>, shows Brig. Gen. Jamie Parada, the vice<br />
chief of the Salvadoran Joint General Staff, a photo of a group of N.H. <strong>Guard</strong>smen pushing a Salvadoran<br />
bus that was stuck in mud during a 2006 medical readiness exercise in Francisco Gotera, El Salvador.<br />
The photo is from a book entitled “Why We Serve,” which Bennett presented to Parada as a gift during<br />
an August <strong>2011</strong> senior military visit. Looking on is Maj. Gen. William Reddel III, the Adjutant General of<br />
the N.H. <strong>Guard</strong>. Photo by Capt. Rob Burnham, NHNG PA<br />
<strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine / <strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
from Boston. The visit was to coincide<br />
with a Salvadoran air show and the<br />
delivery of computers and musical instruments<br />
donated by the University of <strong>New</strong><br />
<strong>Hampshire</strong> ROTC program and students<br />
from Bow High School.<br />
“Our program continues to evolve into<br />
a mutually beneficial partnership,” said<br />
Maj. Gen. William Reddel III, the<br />
Adjutant General of the N.H. <strong>Guard</strong>. “We<br />
are building lasting relationships founded<br />
in a friendly, professional exchange of<br />
expertise in military, civic, business and<br />
educational arenas. We have established<br />
partnerships with our militaries, university<br />
and primary school systems, law enforcement<br />
agencies, search and rescue teams,<br />
and chambers of commerce.”<br />
At the national level, the partnership<br />
gives <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> a prominent role in<br />
nation-building and overall global stability,<br />
Reddel added. El Salvador was the only<br />
country in the Western Hemisphere outside<br />
of the United States to commit troops<br />
in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.<br />
“We believe our partnership played a<br />
role in the country’s decision to support<br />
Mari Carmen Aponte, U.S. Ambassador to El<br />
Salvador, enjoys a conversation with Derek<br />
DeAngelis, a Bow High School humanities teacher,<br />
during a N.H. <strong>Guard</strong> military and civic leader visit to<br />
El Salvador in February <strong>2011</strong>, which included an<br />
office call with Ambassador Aponte at the U.S.<br />
Embassy in San Salvador. The Bow, N.H. school<br />
shares a partnership with a Salvadoran school in<br />
the town of San Jose Villanueva.<br />
Photo courtesy of Maj. Brian Fernandes, NHARNG<br />
Brig. Gen. Craig Bennett, commander of the N.H. Army <strong>Guard</strong>, salutes a Salvadoran cavalry soldier during a<br />
February <strong>2011</strong> N.H. <strong>Guard</strong> leader visit to El Salvador. Photo courtesy of Maj. Brian Fernandes, NHARNG<br />
our commander in chief as well as support<br />
NATO operations in Afghanistan,” said<br />
Reddel. “Our civil-military nature makes<br />
our state and <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> uniquely<br />
qualified to effect a positive impact on<br />
nations with burgeoning democracies like<br />
El Salvador.”<br />
At the individual level, the state is<br />
developing a more diplomatically astute,<br />
globally aware citizen, he added.<br />
The smallest country in Central<br />
America, El Salvador experiences frequent<br />
earthquakes and tremors as well as<br />
hurricanes and tropical storms that often<br />
have devastating effects on the population<br />
and land. The Salvadoran military,<br />
because of its size and capability, has<br />
proved well-suited to respond to natural<br />
disasters, playing a prominent role in<br />
the aftermaths of Hurricane Mitch in<br />
1998, the earthquakes of 2001; and the<br />
eruption of Santa Ana volcano in 2005,<br />
which coincided with a devastating<br />
tropical storm and earthquake that<br />
produced landslides. ❖<br />
A student from San Jose Villanueva, El Salvador,<br />
smiles for a photographer during a break at his<br />
school, Feb. 15, <strong>2011</strong>. The school shares a partnership<br />
with the Bow High School through the N.H.<br />
<strong>Guard</strong>’s State Partnership Program with El<br />
Salvador. Photo courtesy of Maj. Brian Fernandes, NHARNG<br />
IN THE VALLEY OF HAMMOCKS<br />
Tucked between the southern borders of Guatemala and Honduras, El Salvador is home to nearly 7 million people. A fault line running<br />
down the center of the country connects 22 volcanoes, four of which have been active in the last 50 years. More than 1 million people<br />
reside in the capital city of San Salvador, which was originally nicknamed “El Valle de las Hamacas” or “The Valley of the Hammocks”<br />
by Spanish explorers because of the frequent seismic activity.<br />
From 1980 to 1992, a civil war cost the lives of 75,000 people. The country has struggled since then to build a stable economic base<br />
amid crime, corruption and gang violence.<br />
An estimated 1.5 to 2 million Salvadorans live in the United States and send remittances home – accounting for about 17 percent of<br />
the country’s gross domestic product.<br />
<strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong> / <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine 13
MORE THAN<br />
WILLING<br />
14<br />
Five questions for Senior Airman<br />
Ryan Weeks, 22, of the 157th Logistics<br />
Readiness Squadron, N.H. Air <strong>National</strong><br />
<strong>Guard</strong>. The Milan resident was selected<br />
as part of the color guard for the official<br />
ceremony marking the end of the United<br />
States military mission in Iraq held in<br />
Baghdad on Dec. 15. The 157th’s Airman<br />
of the Year for <strong>2011</strong>, Weeks was among<br />
the last N.H. <strong>Guard</strong>smen serving in Iraq.<br />
He was interviewed via email by Maj.<br />
Greg Heilshorn, State PAO.<br />
How were you selected to be a part of the<br />
color guard?<br />
A base-wide email was sent out in<br />
search of an Air Force individual between<br />
the heights of 5’11 and 6’1 who would be<br />
staying in Iraq until “end of mission” and<br />
was interested in representing the Air<br />
Force on the Joint Service Color <strong>Guard</strong><br />
team. I was hesitant at first because I had<br />
zero color guard experience up to that<br />
point, but I decided to go for it. After a<br />
couple days of practice, they determined<br />
that I was the right fit for the team.<br />
How did it feel to be a part of such a<br />
historic ceremony?<br />
It was a tremendous honor. We knew<br />
how important this was to the United<br />
States and especially to the families of<br />
those individuals who made the ultimate<br />
sacrifice. We wanted to guarantee that<br />
the ceremony was flawless.<br />
What’s your mission in Iraq?<br />
I arrived in Iraq in late October for a<br />
short notice tasking to assist with the surge<br />
of troops and equipment leaving the<br />
country. I am in the 447th Expeditionary<br />
Logistics Readiness Squadron. I’m<br />
currently on my third overseas assignment.<br />
The first was an involuntary at Al Asad,<br />
Iraq. The second was Bagram, Afghanistan.<br />
I volunteered for the second and third<br />
deployments.<br />
What are your duties at Pease?<br />
I am a traditional <strong>Guard</strong>sman at the<br />
157th Logistics Readiness Squadron.<br />
When I’m not on active duty orders or on<br />
drill status I attend the University of <strong>New</strong><br />
<strong>Hampshire</strong> as a full-time student.<br />
Why did you join the military?<br />
I was raised in a very proud family<br />
who has the military embedded in their<br />
roots. My brother is a former Marine who<br />
served in Fallujah, Iraq, at the height of<br />
the war in 2006. My father is a retired<br />
Navy veteran who served several tours in<br />
Vietnam. My grandfather served along<br />
with his brothers and the list goes on.<br />
When it came my time, I was more than<br />
willing to serve my country. ❖<br />
<strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine / <strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
MEDEVAC crew receives prestigious award<br />
From left, Capt. Pete Cartmell, commander, F Company, 1/169th MEDEVAC Detachment, N.H. Army <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>; former NHARNG Chief Warrant Officer Zachary<br />
Lane of Bridgeport, W. Va; James Osborne, a rescued hiker; Staff Sgt. Matthew Stohrer of Lebanon, Penn., and a UH-60 aircrew member standardization instructor,<br />
Eastern Army Aviation Training Site, Pennsylvania ARNG; and Sgt. 1st Class Allan Robinson of Litchfield, N.H., quality control/test assurance, 195th Regiment,<br />
NHARNG, pose with Osborne, whose life they saved during a search and rescue mission in February 2008. Photo by Spc. Margaret Taylor, 114th PAD<br />
An aircrew from the 238th MEDEVAC<br />
Company, N.H. Army <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>,<br />
received the <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> Congressional<br />
Law Enforcement Award on Oct. 23 at the<br />
N.H. Police Standards and Training Facility<br />
in Concord.<br />
Capt. Peter Cartmell, retired Chief<br />
Warrant Officer Zachary Lane, Staff Sgt.<br />
Matthew Stoher and Sgt. 1st Class Alan<br />
Robinson were honored along with N.H.<br />
Fish and Game by <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong>’s<br />
congressional delegation for its search and<br />
rescue of two lost hikers on Franconia<br />
Ridge on Feb. 11, 2008.<br />
“With winds gusting up to 65 knots and<br />
freezing fog causing ice buildup on the<br />
blades, it was the most extreme mission for<br />
a N.H. Army <strong>Guard</strong> search and rescue<br />
crew in the last 20 years,” said Col. Frank<br />
Leith, the state Army aviation officer at<br />
the time, in a story for the spring 2008<br />
edition of <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong><br />
Magazine.<br />
It was one of three separate rescue<br />
operations performed by the 238th in a<br />
span of nine days under fierce weather<br />
conditions.<br />
Cartmell received the award for the<br />
second time. ❖<br />
Capt. Pete Cartmell, commander, F Company, 1/169th MEDEVAC Detachment, N.H. Army <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>, is<br />
congratulated by Sen. Jeanne Shaheen for receiving the <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> Congressional Law Enforcement<br />
Award at the N.H. Police Standards and Training facility in Concord, N.H., Oct. 23. Cartmell and three other<br />
members of his former UH-60 Black Hawk crew, C Company, 3-238th Aviation Regiment, received the award<br />
for their participation in a search and rescue mission in February 2008, which saved the life of a lost hiker.<br />
Photo by Spc. Margaret Taylor, 114th PAD<br />
<strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong> / <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine 15
Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Sandra M. Palumbo, U.S. Navy - Bahrain, November 6, 2007<br />
99% of Americans have seen combat on TV.<br />
1% of Americans have seen combat in Iraq or Afghanistan.<br />
We know where you’re coming from.<br />
We’ve got your back. Join the online community<br />
at IAVA.org
One tough mudder<br />
By Tech. Sgt. Angela Stebbins, 157th ARW Public Affairs<br />
This past Mother’s Day was far from the norm for Tech. Sgt.<br />
Melinda Fuller, a mother of three children and non-destructive<br />
inspection shop unit training manager from the 157th Air<br />
Refueling Wing maintenance group.<br />
While most moms would simply want to relax on Mother’s<br />
Day, relaxing was not what Fuller had in mind.<br />
This year, Fuller spent Mother’s Day with those she refers to<br />
as her extended family – other members of the 157th ARW. She<br />
and four other <strong>Guard</strong>smen from Pease participated in the Tough<br />
Mudder Competition at Mount Snow in Vermont. The event was<br />
designed by British Special Forces, and is said by many sports<br />
race and endurance critics to be one of the hardest one-day<br />
endurance competitions in the world, with courses typically<br />
between 7 and 12 miles.<br />
The organization boasts that this competition tests all-around<br />
toughness, fitness, strength, stamina, mental grit and camaraderie<br />
– all in one place and in one day. The contest Fuller competed<br />
in is composed of 10 miles of steep ascents, descents and obstacle<br />
courses that could vie with some of the best military training<br />
facilities in the world. This competition also raises money for<br />
the Wounded Warrior Project, raising more than $600,000 in<br />
2010 alone.<br />
“Six months ago, my team members and I started training.<br />
We ranged in age, gender, fitness levels, body types, heights and<br />
weights. The motivating factors for each of us may have been a<br />
bit different, but ‘bettering our physical fitness’ was a common<br />
goal,” Fuller said.<br />
“Our team from Pease was made up of Tech. Sgt. Keith<br />
Brocato, Tech. Sgt. Hope Townes, 2nd Lt. Jeff Hill, Staff Sgt.<br />
Sean Avery, and myself, (along with some friends and family<br />
members),” Fuller said. “We made a Tough Mudder team pledge,<br />
sang the national anthem with great pride and ran across the<br />
starting line. The ‘race’ that we knew would test our physical and<br />
mental strength took longer than any of us had anticipated – 4.5<br />
hours. At 37 years old, I can say that the ‘race’ was grueling and<br />
filled with physical and mental challenges that I had not expected.<br />
Members of the 157th Air Refueling Wing take on the “Tough Mudder”<br />
competition on Mother’s Day. Picturedfrom left, 2ndLt. Jeff Hill, Tech. Sgt.<br />
Hope Townes, Staff Sgt. Melinda Fuller and Staff Sgt. Sean Avery.<br />
Photo courtesy of Staff Sgt. Fuller<br />
We were faced with vertical climbs and steep descents, kneedeep<br />
mud, icy and rocky terrain and 35-degree water that we<br />
had to swim across.<br />
“It was immediately apparent that this 10-mile course was<br />
going to be tough and could not be done with an ‘every man for<br />
himself’ attitude. We all quickly put the word ‘race’ out of our<br />
minds and replaced it with ‘challenge,’ as we knew the only way<br />
any of us would cross the finish line was if we crossed it together,”<br />
she said.<br />
On average, only 78 percent of the participants finish a<br />
Tough Mudder event; however, every one of our unit members<br />
finished! ❖<br />
PLYING THEIR<br />
TRADE<br />
N.H. <strong>Guard</strong>smen from the 157th Civil Engineer<br />
Squadron, 260th Air Traffic Control Squadron,<br />
andDetachment 2, 160th Engineer Company,<br />
build an internal support structure during<br />
renovations to the NATO school administration<br />
building in Oberammergau, Germany,<br />
Aug. 16, <strong>2011</strong>.<br />
Photo by Tech. Sgt. Aaron Vezeau, 157th ARW PA<br />
<strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong> / <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine 17
SALUTING OUR 14TH PRESIDENT<br />
Maj. Gen. William Reddel III, the Adjutant General of the N.H. <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>, salutes a flag held by the Governor’s Horse <strong>Guard</strong> during a ceremony Nov. 22, <strong>2011</strong>, at<br />
Old North Cemetery in Concord to honor the 207th birthday of Franklin Pierce, the 14th president of the United States. Photo by Staff Sgt. Whitney Hughes, 114th PAD<br />
18<br />
<strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine / <strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
Jumping on the back of a speeding train<br />
By Krista Graham<br />
This morning Tom came in from<br />
walking our dog. As he knelt down to take<br />
off its leash, he complained, “All you do<br />
is sniff around. You don’t accomplish<br />
your mission!”<br />
Tom has been home for several weeks<br />
now. Aside from the fact that he speaks<br />
largely in military terms or acronyms and<br />
still measures time on a 24-hour clock, he<br />
finally seems to be settling in. But it has<br />
taken a while.<br />
The first several days he was home,<br />
he described it as feeling like “waking up<br />
from a coma.” Like Rip Van Winkle, he<br />
had opened his eyes one day to find himself<br />
in a home that had moved on without<br />
him. The structure of the house was the<br />
same, but the walls and carpets were<br />
different.<br />
The children had also changed. One<br />
had become a teenager, and another was<br />
now old enough to drive. One had turned<br />
20, and another had joined the Marines.<br />
The neighborhood was also different.<br />
Two houses had sold, and new families<br />
had moved in. Our extended family had<br />
grown. A niece had been born, and a<br />
brother-in-law married. So many changes<br />
in such a short time!<br />
After about a week of wandering<br />
around in this waking dream, I heard Tom<br />
say to a friend, “You know what it feels<br />
like being home?” I expected to hear the<br />
coma metaphor again but was surprised<br />
to hear him say, “It is like jumping on to<br />
the back of a speeding train!” After a year<br />
of military consistency with a predictable<br />
routine and clearly defined mission, he<br />
found himself plunged into the world of<br />
work schedules and car pools and lessons<br />
and sleepovers and errands. Our “normal”<br />
family routine is sheer chaos and mayhem<br />
compared to what he’s been used to.<br />
From my point of view, it is good to<br />
have him home. I had grown a bit weary<br />
of being on my own. Certain things were<br />
really starting to get old. Little things,<br />
“And best of all,<br />
when my 15 year old<br />
comes to me and says,<br />
‘Mom, will you take me out driving?’<br />
I can reply with a smile,<br />
‘Go ask your father!’”<br />
–Krista Graham<br />
Chief Warrant Officer Thomas Graham is welcomed home by NHARNG Command Chief Warrant Officer<br />
William Harville at Manchester airport on Aug. 29. Photo by Spc. Courtney Selig, 114th PAD<br />
like having to walk from one side of my<br />
bed to the other to make it each morning<br />
or never being able to pass off a tough<br />
decision by saying, “Go ask your father!”<br />
Still, it hasn’t been all roses since<br />
Tom reentered our world. First of all, he<br />
returned with far more than he left with.<br />
I knew we were in trouble when, prior to<br />
his return, I started receiving large boxes<br />
mailed from Kuwait addressed from Tom<br />
to Tom. As the time of his arrival got<br />
closer, the boxes got bigger. Some were<br />
large flat squares. Others were giant<br />
plastic foot lockers. Every few days, I had<br />
to drive to the post office to pick up a<br />
package too large to deliver. I heaped<br />
these containers up in the corner of our<br />
spare room. Several times visitors asked<br />
me, “What’s in all those boxes?” My answer<br />
was always the same: “I don’t know, and<br />
I don’t want to know.”<br />
When the unpacking process began<br />
about five days after Tom got home, I<br />
quickly learned that unnecessary stuff<br />
shipped home by a soldier is not to be<br />
called “junk.” The correct term is “artifacts.”<br />
Needless to say, we were up to our<br />
necks in artifacts for several days. Just<br />
when I was about ready to check into a<br />
hotel, Tom miraculously made it all disappear.<br />
I am not asking where it ended<br />
up. What I don’t know can’t irritate me.<br />
Before Tom left, we attended an<br />
Army-sponsored pre-deployment workshop.<br />
We were challenged with the fact<br />
that statistically families either break down<br />
or grow stronger as a result of deployment<br />
separation. We were told that we<br />
either had to actively work to strengthen<br />
relationships, or they would naturally<br />
erode under the strain. We decided that<br />
we wanted to be one of the families who<br />
came out of this year better than we went<br />
in. We certainly didn’t do everything in<br />
top-notch style. Tom left many emails<br />
from home unanswered, and I served<br />
more frozen dinners on paper plates than<br />
I’d like to admit. But overall, looking<br />
back on where we were a year ago and<br />
where we are now, I think we can say,<br />
“Mission Accomplished.”<br />
And best of all, when my 15 year old<br />
comes to me and says, “Mom, will you<br />
take me out driving?” I can reply with a<br />
smile, “Go ask your father!” ❖<br />
Krista’s husband, Chief Warrant Officer<br />
Tom Graham, deployed with the 197th<br />
Fires Brigade as the brigade historian and<br />
a contracting specialist. During his<br />
deployment, Krista wrote a blog from the<br />
perspective of a wife and mother. This was<br />
her last installment.<br />
<strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong> / <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine 19
Back on solid ground<br />
In the late summer, early fall of<br />
<strong>2011</strong> the 197th Fires Brigade and<br />
Detachment 18, Operational Support<br />
Airlift, returned from deployments in<br />
support of Operations <strong>New</strong> Dawn and<br />
Enduring Freedom. The homecomings<br />
marked the completion of the largest<br />
mobilization of N.H. <strong>Guard</strong>smen<br />
at any one time since World War II.<br />
20<br />
Maj. Gen. William Reddel III, Adjutant General for the<br />
state of <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong>, along with other members of<br />
the <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong>, greet returning<br />
soldiers from the 197th Fires Brigade, Aug. 16, in<br />
Manchester.<br />
Master Sgt. Thomas Pratt of HHB, 197th Brigade embraces his family during a welcome home<br />
reception at the Manchester armory on Aug. 29, <strong>2011</strong>. Pratt was among the last of 750 brigade<br />
soldiers to redeploy after serving in Kuwait in support of Operation <strong>New</strong> Dawn.<br />
Photo by Spc. Courtney Selig, 114th PAD<br />
From left, Col. Peter Corey, commander of the 197th Fires Brigade, and Command Sgt. Maj.<br />
Thomas Considine unfurl the unit colors during a welcome home reception at the Manchester<br />
armory on Aug. 29, <strong>2011</strong>. The soldiers returned from a yearlong deployment in support of<br />
Operation <strong>New</strong> Dawn. Photo by Spc. Courtney Selig, 114th PAD<br />
<strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine / <strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
Maj. Gen. William Reddel III, Adjutant General for the<br />
state of <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong>, and Gov. John Lynch,<br />
governor of <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong>, pose for a photo with<br />
Isaiah Cross, 7, and Esther Cross, 4, at the<br />
Operational Support Airlift Detachment 18, welcome<br />
home ceremony, Sept. 22, at the Army Aviation<br />
Support Facility.<br />
Maj. Brian Fisher of the 197th Fires Brigade hugs his<br />
son during a welcome home ceremony at the<br />
Manchester armory on Aug. 19, <strong>2011</strong>. The soldiers<br />
returned from a yearlong deployment in support of<br />
Operation <strong>New</strong> Dawn. Photo by Spc. Courtney Selig, 114th PAD<br />
<strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong> / <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine<br />
All seven members of Operational Support Airlift Detachment 18<br />
return home to <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> after their yearlong deployment<br />
to Afghanistan to fly surveillance and intelligence-gathering<br />
missions from bases in Bagram and Kandahar. Detachment 18<br />
was welcomed by friends and family at the Army Aviation<br />
Support Facility, Concord, N.H., on Sept. 22.<br />
Chief Warrant Officer 4 George Munson of Operational Support Airlift Detachment 18 is welcomed home by<br />
his family at the Army Aviation Support Facility in Concord, Sept. 13. Det. 18 deployed to Afghanistan in<br />
support of Operation Enduring Freedom flying surveillance and intelligence-gathering missions from<br />
Bagram and Kandahar. Photo by Spc. Courtney Selig, 114th PAD<br />
21
BALANCING ACT<br />
Chief Warrant Officer Joe Bledsoe of Joint Force<br />
Headquarters traverses a rope bridge during the unit’s<br />
August <strong>2011</strong> drill weekend. The river crossing was part<br />
of training to emphasize soldier proficiency, physical<br />
fitness and team building. Photo by Spc. Karin Leach, 114th PAD<br />
22<br />
<strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine / <strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
Army Promotions & Awards<br />
Private Second Class<br />
Kenneth Brown<br />
Ryan Peterson<br />
Nicholas Theberge<br />
Spencer Dayton<br />
Jesse Therrien<br />
Kyle Simard<br />
Private First Class<br />
Richard Rivenburgh<br />
Joseph Green<br />
Elijah Hawkins<br />
Anthony Govostes<br />
Lydia Whitmore<br />
Bradford Colburn<br />
Benjamin Nicholl<br />
Joshua Calawa<br />
Specialist<br />
Nicholas Daley<br />
Farnon Dix<br />
Thomas Tetreault III<br />
Sean Yamamoto<br />
Sergeant<br />
Nicholas Miller<br />
Brandon Cabrera<br />
Dustin Glidden<br />
Sara McPherson<br />
Diane Cammarata<br />
Gavin Cafarellistrablizky<br />
James Berry<br />
Vivan Duong<br />
Kory Orfant<br />
Sergeant First Class<br />
Joanne Desruisseaux<br />
Luis Cepeda<br />
Michelle Lowes<br />
Joseph Phinney<br />
Clinton Range<br />
Kent Johnson<br />
Chief Warrant Officer 2<br />
Robert Norton<br />
William Fish III<br />
Michael Fletcher<br />
Athena Petrin<br />
David Voight<br />
Chief Warrant Officer 3<br />
Thomas Graham II<br />
First Lieutenant<br />
Mark Dupuis<br />
Captain<br />
Travis Ostrem<br />
Lieutenant Colonel<br />
Roy Hunter IV<br />
William Lemaire<br />
John Logsdon<br />
<strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong> / <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine 23
24<br />
Air<br />
Promotions<br />
& Awards<br />
Airman 1st Class<br />
Liza Roy, 157 Student Flight<br />
Senior Airman<br />
Eric Moulton, 260 ATC<br />
Justin Evans, 157 CMF<br />
Sean Wood, 157 LRS<br />
Staff Sergeant<br />
Jennifer Frisina, 157 MXS<br />
Russell Georgio, 157 MXG<br />
Tedd Hadley, 157 MXG<br />
Marc Fillion, 157 MDG<br />
Alan Roma, 157 CES<br />
Raymond Miller, 260 ATC<br />
Technical Sergeant<br />
Gary Thomas, 260 ATC<br />
Christopher Philibotte, 260 ATC<br />
Glen Meyers, 157 MXG<br />
William Davenport, 157 MDG<br />
Michael Hutchins, 260 ATC<br />
Master Sergeant<br />
Jason Veziris, 157 OG<br />
Robert Stewart, 260 ATC<br />
UPLIFTING TRAINING<br />
From left, Sgt.1st Class Jeffrey Garand of <strong>New</strong>fields, detachment training NCO for the <strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> Army<br />
<strong>Guard</strong>’s 54th Troop Command, and Sgt. Rodney Anderson of Exeter, crew chief for Company C, 3rd Battalion,<br />
238th Aviation Regiment (MEDEVAC), participate in hoist training Oct. 12. The soldiers use the training to<br />
practice using the hoists which can lift up to 600 pounds of personnel or equipment during state or national<br />
emergencies. Photo courtesy of Staff Sgt. Michael Noel, NHARNG<br />
<strong>New</strong> <strong>Hampshire</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Guard</strong> Magazine / <strong>Winter</strong> <strong>2011</strong>