NCNGA Weekly Guardsman for June 7, 2018

June 7, 2018

 

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The “Black Diamond” Battalion cases colors in preparation for deployment DVIDS 

Leaders from the 92nd Engineer Battalion, 20th Engineer Brigade conducted a colors casing ceremony June 1 in preparation for the battalion’s upcoming deployment.

Over 500 Soldiers from the “Black Diamond” battalion will be spread throughout the Central Command area of operation and provide engineer support to conduct construction, clearance, combat engineer mobility, counter mobility and survivability missions said Maj. James Belinga, battalion operations officer.

They will be replacing the 505th Engineer Battalion, a National Guard
Unit from North Carolina in support of Operation Spartan Shield.

The casing of the colors symbolizes the departure of the 92nd Engineer Battalion and also signals a first said Maj. Thomas Elison, battalion executive officer.

“We are the first active duty battalion to fill the Operation Spartan Shield engineer battalion role in over ten years,” said Elison. “In previous years the companies assigned to OSS came from multiple battalions. This will be a rare opportunity to deploy the battalion with all its companies.”

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These NC museums offer free admission and discounts to military families through Labor Day News & Observer 

Memorial Day weekend kicks off the unofficial start of summer, and with that, vacation season.

That also means the Blue Star Museum program begins offering free admission and discounts for active-duty military personnel and their families, including National Guard and Reserve families. The program runs Saturday, May 26 through Labor Day (Sept. 3).

Blue Star Museums include cultural, art, history and children’s museums. The project, since 2010, is a partnership of the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families, the Department of Defense and museums across the country.

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3rd NCNG Educational Foundation Cruise for Charity NCNGEF 

The North Carolina National Guard Education Foundation is holding it’s 3rd Cruise for Charity! Royal Carribean will set sail on their Adventure Of the Seas cruise on January 19, from Ft. Lauderdale. Cabins start at $709, with a $250/person deposit. Some of the proceeds from each cabin will go to the NCNG Education Foundation.

Click below to register, or email rbliley@cruiseplanners.com for questions.

Prices are per person, double occupancy, based on availability and subject to change without notice.

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The best part of waking up is Dustoff coffee in your cup Army.mil 

The grinding, banging, clanking and whistling all coming from an espresso machine fill the air with aromas of fresh ground coffee and heavenly bliss as Soldiers place their orders.

Ordering the perfect cup of joe has become an art form, a skill, a scientific experiment that when done correctly can make you forget about the stressful woes of your work-filled day ahead.

The Dustoff Coffee shop began with the purchase of an espresso machine and is now used to boost morale, build unit cohesion and bolster energy for Soldiers to complete their daily tasks.

“The guys we were [replacing] were selling the espresso machine, and I was like, well, there are a few things we could pay for around here if we started a coffee shop,” said 1st Lt Peter Bendorf, medevac pilot. “It would make all of our lives a little bit easier.”

With the opening of the shop, Soldiers assigned to the 449th Combat Aviation Brigade, a component of the North Carolina National Guard, get to experience a real coffee shop. Dustoff Coffee isn’t your typical coffee shop, being located in an office space in the brigade’s work area and operated by medical evacuation pilots assigned to Company G, 1st Battalion, 189th Aviation Regiment, Oregon Army National Guard.

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June — Today in Guard History National Guard 

1968 Tuy Hoa Air Base, Vietnam – New Mexico’s 188th Tactical Fighter Squadron (TFS) arrives, becoming the third Air National Guard unit to serve in Vietnam. Combined on June 14th with New York’s newly arrived 136th TFS into the 31st Tactical Fighter Wing, both squadrons immediately began flying close ground support missions for American troops. These two units are the only Guard units, Air or Army to actually be assigned to the same operational headquarters while serving in Vietnam. During the course of its tour the 188th will fly 6,029 sorties and lose three pilots in combat, including two missing in action and later declared killed. The 136th flew nearly as many sorties, with one pilot killed in combat and three killed in stateside training. One member of the 188th, Sergeant Melvyn S. Montano, will become a commissioned officer after the unit returns home and in December 1994 he is appointed the Adjutant General of New Mexico; the only known enlisted Guardsman serving in Vietnam War to later achieve this position in any state.

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NC National Guard Association is currently taking applications for the Executive Director Position. For those interested, here is the job description. NCNGA 

The Weekly Guardsman


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