Ohio National Guard Photo Gallery - December 2013

Photo Gallery

U.S. Rep Steve Stivers (center), of Ohio's 15th Congressional District, visits with Maj. Gen. Deborah A. Ashenhurst (left), Ohio adjutant general, and retired Maj. Gen. Gus Hargett, National Guard Association of the United States (NGAUS) president.

U.S. Rep Steve Stivers (center), of Ohio's 15th Congressional District, visits with Maj. Gen. Deborah A. Ashenhurst (left), Ohio adjutant general, and retired Maj. Gen. Gus Hargett, National Guard Association of the United States (NGAUS) president, during a reception hosted by the Ohio National Guard on Dec. 3, 2013, at the National Guard Memorial in Washington, D.C. In addition to being a congressman since 2011, Stivers has served 28 years in the Ohio Army National Guard.

Courtesy photo
Nelson Mandela, 1918 - 2013 In honor of the life of former South African President Nelson Mandela, and in accordance with orders from the President of the United States of America, I hereby proclaim, by the authority ·vested in me as Governor of the State of Ohio by the Ohio Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, that the flags of the United States of America and the State of Ohio shall be flown at half-staff upon all public buildings and grounds throughout the State of Ohio from sunrise Friday, Dec. 6 until sunset, Dec. 9, 2013. ~ John R. Kasich
Staff Sgt. Rudy Harkless hugs his wife, Stacie, and daughter, Olivia, after stepping off the bus on Dec. 7, 2013, in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, before the welcome home ceremony for Advisor Team 1 after its deployment to Afghanistan.

Staff Sgt. Rudy Harkless hugs his wife, Stacie, and daughter, Olivia, after stepping off the bus on Dec. 7, 2013, in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, before the welcome home ceremony for Advisor Team 1 after its deployment to Afghanistan. The Advisor Team program is a key NATO contributor toward the development of the Afghan National Civil Order Police and the Afghan Border Police.

Sgt. Daniel Eddy, ONG
Past and present Airmen get together for a group photograph while attending the inactivation ceremony for the 145th Air Refueling Squadron.

Past and present Airmen get together for a group photograph while attending the inactivation ceremony for the 145th Air Refueling Squadron, Dec. 7, 2013, at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, near Dayton, Ohio. The 145th ARS, which was located at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base in Columbus, Ohio, was honored for nearly 60 years of distinguished service in the Ohio Air National Guard.

Tech. Sgt. Zachary Wintgens, ONG
First Lt. Evan Howard (left), a member of the 371st Sustainment Brigade, reads a book with Daniar, a student at the Nadjeschda Children's Rehabilitation Center

First Lt. Evan Howard (left), a member of the 371st Sustainment Brigade, reads a book with Daniar, a student at the Nadjeschda Children's Rehabilitation Center, on Dec. 8, 2013, in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Howard and other deployed Manas, Kyrgyzstan Transit Center service members spent time with children from the school after delivering 13 boxes of clothes and toys donated by the Rotary Club of Akron, Ohio, as part of Operation Deployed for Good.

Senior Airman Ross Whitley, U.S. Air Force
Maj. Gen. Deborah A. Ashenhurst (from left), Ohio adjutant general, state Reps. Doug Green and Michael Sheehy, and retired Master Sgt. Ron Rosser, Medal of Honor recipient

Maj. Gen. Deborah A. Ashenhurst (from left), Ohio adjutant general, state Reps. Doug Green and Michael Sheehy, and retired Master Sgt. Ron Rosser, Medal of Honor recipient, attend the Wreaths Across America memorial service on Dec. 9, 2013, in the Ohio Statehouse Atrium in Columbus, Ohio. Wreaths Across America's mission is to educate present and future generations about the service and sacrifices of Veterans, current military service members and their Families with nationwide ceremonies planned each December.

Bill Pierce, ONG
Staff Sgt. Logan Fuller (left) and 1st Lt. Jordan Hickey of the 178th Fighter Wing deliver a gift to a patient at the Dayton Children's Medical Center

Staff Sgt. Logan Fuller (left) and 1st Lt. Jordan Hickey of the 178th Fighter Wing deliver a gift to a patient at the Dayton Children's Medical Center on Dec. 12, 2013, in Dayton, Ohio, as part of the wing's Company Grade Officers Council community outreach event.

Elisabeth Gelhar, ONG
Gen. Frank Grass, chief, National
Guard Bureau, will be hosting a Facebook town hall meeting at 11:30 a.m. Friday, Dec. 13 on the National Guard's 377th birthday. People can submit questions in the comments section on his Facebook page, General Frank J. Grass, or vote for questions they want answered during the session by "liking" them. Grass will answer questions from his Pentagon office.
Ribbon-cutting ceremony on Dec. 16, 2013, in Springfield, Ohio for the realignment of state Route 794

Maj. Gen. Mark E. Bartman (fifth from left), Ohio assistant adjutant general for Air, heads a group of dignitaries performing a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Dec. 16, 2013, in Springfield, Ohio for the realignment of state Route 794. The realignment moves the road farther away from the Springfield Air National Guard Base, creating a safer environment for service members and civilians who work there, and complies with current Defense Department antiterrorism requirements.

Sgt. Daniel Eddy, ONG
Dec. 16, the Ohio National Guard will welcome home 94 Soldiers from the 837th Engineer Company (Mobility Augmentation Company)

Later today, Monday, Dec. 16, the Ohio National Guard will welcome home 94 Soldiers from the 837th Engineer Company (Mobility Augmentation Company), located in Lorain, Ohio. In this photo from the unit's deployment to Afghanistan, Spc. Bryan Brooks (right), of Mansfield, Ohio, and Sgt. 1st Class Willy Sobczak, from Montpelier, Ohio, prepare for a route clearance patrol.

Sgt. Richard Ventresca, ONG
Brig. Gen. John C. Harris Jr. (far left), Ohio assistant adjutant general for Army, recognizes the commitment and leadership of Capt. Chad A. Apple and 1st Sgt. Joseph D. Bernert (standing, from left), commander and first sergeant of the 837th Engineer Company, at the unit's welcome home ceremony

Brig. Gen. John C. Harris Jr. (far left), Ohio assistant adjutant general for Army, recognizes the commitment and leadership of Capt. Chad A. Apple and 1st Sgt. Joseph D. Bernert (standing, from left), commander and first sergeant of the 837th Engineer Company, at the unit's welcome home ceremony on Dec. 16, 2013, at Lorain High School in Lorain, Ohio. The 837th Engineer Company was responsible for clearance and assured mobility along about a 50-mile stretch of highway, successfully completing numerous patrols and cumulatively logging more than 7,500 miles during a nearly yearlong deployment to Afghanistan.

Staff Sgt. Nicholas Pavlik, ONG
178th Fighter Wing food drive to benefit Second Harvest Food Bank in Springfield, Ohio

Staff Sgt. Elisabeth Gelhar (from left), Senior Airman Michael Howell and Staff Sgt. Kelly Tussey stand with some of the food items that were collected by members of the 178th Fighter Wing as part of a food drive to benefit Second Harvest Food Bank in Springfield, Ohio. Unit members delivered the collected food on Dec. 19, 2013, as part of the annual food drive organized by the wing Airman/Noncommissioned Officer Council.

Ohio National Guard photo
severe winter weather response exercise

Maj. Gen. Deborah A. Ashenhurst (from left), Ohio adjutant general, John
Born, director of the Ohio Department of Public Safety, and Nancy Dragani, executive director for the Ohio Emergency Management Agency, participate in a severe winter weather response exercise Dec. 19, 2013, at the Ohio Emergency Operations Center in Columbus, Ohio. The exercise emphasized the multi-agency partnership needed to respond during a critical incident, including planned pre-positioning of equipment, supplies and resources across the state to ensure emergency response readiness.

Staff Sgt. Nicholas Pavlik, ONG
Maj. Gen. Robert S. Beightler Armory Special Children's Christmas Party

For more than 30 years, the Maj. Gen. Robert S. Beightler Armory Special Children's Christmas Party has been an Ohio National Guard tradition, maintained by the hard work of dedicated volunteers and a fundraising program fueled primarily by donations from Beightler Armory's employee dress-down day participants. Funds raised during the year's 26 dress-down days are used to purchase a gift of choice for the special children who attend.

Staff Sgt. Nicholas Pavlik, ONG

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Warm holiday greetings and best wishes for the New Year.

On behalf of the Soldiers and Airmen
of the Ohio National Guard...

Sincere thanks for your support and contributions throughout the year.

Warm holiday greetings and best wishes for the New Year.

 
Command Sgt. Maj. Scott Barga (left) and Col. Gregory Robinette (right), leadership team for the 371st Sustainment Brigade, sit with country music artist Kellie Pickler.

Command Sgt. Maj. Scott Barga (left) and Col. Gregory Robinette (right), leadership team for the 371st Sustainment Brigade, sit with country music artist Kellie Pickler, who performed a concert Dec. 27, 2013, at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, as part of an overseas USO holiday tour. Pickler spent nine days with service members deployed throughout Southwest Asia, including Ohio National Guard Soldiers, delivering holiday cheer and performing concerts.

Courtesy photo
The 837th Engineer Company, from Lorain, Ohio

The 837th Engineer Company, from Lorain, Ohio, has redeployed to Fort Bliss, Texas, after successfully completing its overseas mission in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. The unit, which will be welcomed home to Ohio during an official ceremony later this month, conducted route clearance missions in Afghanistan.

Courtesy photo