April 2019 Gallery

Remembering the deadly Xenia tornado on its 45th anniversary

Ohio National Guard Soldiers and Airmen on state active duty assisted in the cleanup efforts in Xenia, Ohio after an April 3, 1974, tornado. The F-5 storm that destroyed or damaged thousands of homes, businesses and schools was responsible for 33 deaths, and hundreds more injured.

~ READ STORY

Ohio National Guard Take Your Kid to Work Day

Jakoby Mann, son of Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Mann, Ohio Army National Guard historian, checks out a fox that the Columbus Zoo brought as part of the Ohio National Guard’s “Bring Your Kid to Work Day” March 29, 2019, at the Maj. Gen. Robert S. Beightler Armory in Columbus, Ohio. In addition to children shadowing their parents on the job for part of the day, the event featured visits from The Ohio State University mascot Brutus Buckeye, Columbus Clippers mascot Krash and animals from the Columbus Zoo. More than 40 children ages 5-16 attended.

~ SEE MORE PHOTOS ON FACEBOOK

Hungary, Ohio agree to future economic cooperation

Lydia Mihalik (from left), director of the Ohio Development Services Agency, Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted, Péter Szijjártó, Hungarian foreign affairs and trade minister, and Maj. Gen. John C. Harris Jr., Ohio adjutant general, stand for a photo April 3, 2019, at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus. Mihalik and Szijjártó, signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at strengthening economic, technological and commercial cooperation between Ohio and Hungary.

~ STATE PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM: HUNGARY

On Gold Star Spouses’ Day, April 5

America pays respect to the spouses of fallen members of the U.S. Armed Forces. The military community, including the Ohio National Guard, is indebted to Gold Star husbands and wives, as they are the legacies of their spouse’s ultimate sacrifice and service to the nation. Ohio National Guard Survivor Outreach Services helps more than 2,700 survivor Families on an annual basis, among all service branches and components.

'Buckeye' Brigade change of command

Soldiers of the 37th Infantry Brigade Combat Team stand in formation following the “Buckeye” Brigade's change of command ceremony April 7, 2019, at Camp Atterbury Joint Maneuver Training Center near Edinburgh, Ind. 37th IBCT Command Sgt. Maj. Jeffrey Shuster (holding the brigade colors) is flanked by incoming commander Lt. Col. Matthew Woodruff (left) and outgoing commander Col. Corwin Lusk, who had led the brigade since 2016.

~ 37th INFANTRY BRIGADE COMBAT TEAM | WATCH VIDEO

Welcoming home Ohio troops from the Great War

Following the end of World War I, Ohio National Guard units returned from France to Ohio in the spring of 1919, making stops in various cities around the state for homecoming parades prior to demobilization at Camp Sherman in Chillicothe, Ohio.

~ 37TH INFANTRY BRIGADE COMBAT TEAM |  READ STORY

Sexual Assault Awareness Month

SEXUAL ASSAULT PREVENTION & RESPONSE PROGRAM

Victim advocate profile

Master Sergeant Lyndsy Bringman, an administrative functional manager with the 179th Airlift Wing in Mansfield, Ohio, has been a victim advocate for the past 10 years, providing support and guidance to survivors who have experienced sexual trauma. She said ensuring that service members receive proper mental, physical and emotional care following a traumatic event is essential to maintaining unit readiness as well as a positive culture and climate.

~ 179th AIRLIFT WING |  READ STORY

Victim advocate profile

Staff Sgt. Jan Almasy, a personnel specialist with the 179th Airlift Wing in Mansfield, Ohio, works with the wing’s student flight to prepare new Airmen for basic training and is a nurse in his civilian job. He says he has always had a natural inclination for helping people, which is why he also serves as a victim advocate to assist service members who have experienced sexual trauma. “A victim advocate is somebody who is a voice to those who have lost their voice,” he says. “That’s probably the best way I can describe it. We are a support system for people who have encountered a situation that has taken away their voice.”

~ 179th AIRLIFT WING |  READ STORY

Victim advocate profile

Staff Sgt. Heather Stoffer is a plans, scheduling and documentation specialist with the 179th Airlift Wing in Mansfield, Ohio, developing maintenance schedules for the wing’s fleet of C-130H Hercules aircraft. In her additional role as a victim advocate, Stoffer said being there for the victim is the most important part and even the simple act of just listening to their story can be impactful. “Being there for them after they have to tell their story is really important because, for the most part, not many people around them know what is going on,” she said

~ 179th AIRLIFT WING |  READ STORY

Cyber Shield 19 training exercise underway

A group of National Guard Soldiers and Airmen are engaged in a lecture taught by industry professionals from John Hopkins University during the training portion of the Cyber Shield 19 exercise, April 8, 2019, at Camp Atterbury, Ind. Cyber Shield is an annual Army National Guard-sponsored training exercise bringing together more than 800 Soldiers, Airmen and civilians from 40 states and territories to work alongside industry partners and test their skills in response to cybersecurity incidents.

~ CYBER SHIELD 19 COVERAGE

Serbian chaplains visit Ohio to strengthen military, civil relationships

Four members of the Serbian Armed Forces chaplain corps visited in April 2019 as part of the 13-year State Partnership Program pairing between the Ohio National Guard and Serbia. The chaplains visited the St. Sava Serbian Eastern Orthodox Church and Notre Dame College in Cleveland to interact with the ethnic Serbian community and strengthen military and civilian relationships between Serbia and Ohio.

~ STATE PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM: SERBIA |  READ STORY

164th Airlift Squadron trains with Army’s 82nd Airborne Division

Aircrew from the 164th Airlift Squadron trained with the active-duty Army’s 82nd Airborne Division in April 2019 at Pope Army Airfield in Fayetteville, N.C. The Ohio Air National Guard unit participated in the joint training to strengthen its airdrop skills, through personnel and heavy equipment drops, utilizing the C-130H Hercules airframe.

~ 179TH AIRLIFT WING |  READ STORY

LINEAGE LINK UP:
Support Company, 216th Engineer Battalion

The Ohio Army National Guard's Support Company, 216th Engineer Battalion originated in March 1911 in Cincinnati as Troop C, 1st Cavalry Squadron. Since then, Soldiers of the unit have served in both World War I and II as well as Iraq. In this photo, Soldiers of Battery D, 136th Field Artillery conduct salvage work in Chaillons, France, Nov. 20, 1918.

~ SUPPORT COMPANY, 216th ENGINEER BATTALION

Ohio educators get the Soldier’s experience for a day

Ohio educators and Army National Guard recruiters stand for a group photo in front of a CH-47 Chinook helicopter as part of the daylong “Guard 101” experience hosted out of the Army Aviation Support Facility #1 April 18, 2019, in North Canton, Ohio. These periodic orientation flights and overviews help inform school administrators and educators about the roles and missions of the Ohio National Guard and enhance relations between schools and local recruiters

~ OHIO NATIONAL GUARD OUTREACH

Ohio National Guard celebrates Month of the Military Child

Campbell Miller (right), the Operation Homefront 2019 National Guard Military Child of the Year®, was honored during an awards gala April 18, 2019, in Washington, D.C., in conjunction with the national Month of the Military Child. Miller is the son of Col. Allison Miller, commander of the 179th Airlift Wing in Mansfield, Ohio, and was one of seven children of military service members who were selected based on their scholarship, volunteerism, leadership and extracurricular involvement, with each receiving prizes including a $10,000 cash award.

~ READ STORY |  SEE PHOTOS

180th Fighter Wing flies south for training

More than 130 Airmen from the 180th Fighter Wing deployed to Patrick Air Force Base for two weeks in January and February to conduct dissimilar air combat training, basic fighter maneuvers, defensive air counter tactics and tactical intercept missions alongside F-15 Strike Eagles with the Massachusetts Air National Guard’s 104th Fighter Wing. During the cold winter months, the Swanton, Ohio-based 180th FW is able to maintain its mission-ready capabilities by training in locations with better weather conditions, such as Patrick AFB.

~ 180th WING  |  READ STORY

Counterdrug Task Force supports annual We Are The Majority Rally

The Ohio National Guard Counterdrug Task Force supported more than 1,800 Ohio teens during the We Are The Majority Rally in downtown Columbus. The annual event celebrates Ohio teens leading a drug-free lifestyle, raises awareness about substance misuse and advocates for youth-led prevention.

~ COUNTERDRUG TASK FORCE |  READ STORY