November 2012

Undergoes annual training at Georgia Garrison Training Center, teams up with 78th Aviation Troop Command

GeorGiA STATe DefeNSe forCe

Aided by Georgia National Guard Guardsmen and Chinooks

HUrriCANe SANDy relief efforT

Change of responsibility

GeorGiA Army GUArD CommAND SGT mAj.

Table of ConTenTs1-185th Aviation soars into Boy Scout Troop 444 camp 3

Georgia hosts biggest Veterans job fair in state history 4

NCO Notepad 5

Nelson relinquishes responsibility as Georgia Army National Guard CSM 7

Team JointSTARS holds annual family day 8

Fredericksburg: Union low tide on the banks of the Rappahannock 9

Signal sergeant’s childhood fascination with technology serves him well in the Guard 11

The Georgia Guard and Veterans Day 12

Georgia Guardsmen, Chinooks return from Sandy relief mission 13

TAG’s Veterans Day Message 17

Professional Development Bookshelf: Strengths Based Leadership 18

Georgia SDF uses Annual Training to practice SAR and MEDEVAC missions 19

Tapping State Defense Forces to decrease defense spending 21

Riggers host familiarization event with international partners 23

Around the Guard 25

1 | The Georgia Guardsman

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November 2012 | 2

3Commander-in-Chief: Gov. Nathan Deal

Adjutant General of Georgia: Maj. Gen. Jim Butterworth

State Director of Public Affairs: Ms. MaryTherese Tebbe

Managing EditorMr. Seth G. Stuck

Operations NCO:Sgt. 1st Class Gerard Brown

Layout and Design: Mr. Steven Welch

Contributing Ga. DoD Organizations: 124th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment, 116th Air Control Wing Public Affairs Office, Army National Guard Unit Public Affairs Representatives, Air National Guard Wing Public Affairs Representatives, Georgia State Defense Force Public Affairs.

Editorial Inquiry and Submissions: Seth.G.Stuck@us.army.mil or (678) 569-3663

The Georgia Guardsman is published monthly under the provisions of AR 360-81 and AF 6-1 by the Georgia Department of Defense Public Affairs Office. The views and opinions expressed in the Georgia Guardsman are not necessarily those of the Departments of the Army, Air Force or the Adjutant General of Georgia. The Georgia Guardsman is distributed free-of-charge to members of the Georgia Army and Air National Guard, State Defense Force and other interested persons upon request.

Up-to-the-minute Ga. DoD news and information can be found at www.gadod.net

www.Facebook.com/GeorgiaGuard

feeds.FeedBurner.com/GeorgiaGuard

www.Flickr.com/GaNatlGuard

www.Twitter.com/GeorgiaGuard

www.youtube.com/GeorgiaNationalGuard

3 | The Georgia Guardsman

CLAY NATIONAL GUARD CENTER, Marietta, Ga., Nov. 3, 2012 – Georgia Army Guardsmen from Winder’s Detachment 1, Company C, 1-185th Aviation, landed at the Boy Scouts of America’s (BSA) Troop 444 camping event near Canton, Ga. Arriving at the field in a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter, scouts were pleasantly surprised by the aircraft’s strong wash of wind. The Scouts organized the weekend to provide Cub Scout Pack 700 with a look into what it takes to advance to the next scouting level, and to see what it’s like to be a Georgia Guardsman.

Chief Warrant Officer 3 Brandon Thomas, a 1-185th Black Hawk pilot, says he and his crew were excited to participate.

“We feel truly honored to be part of this. The children love it, and it’s our pleasure to provide this experience to them,” Thomas explained. “These are the future leaders of our country, and we are happy to enlighten them and provide them with aviation knowledge.”

Troop 444 and Pack 700 conduct their family camping weekend annually. The goal is to encourage the oldest Cub Scouts to continue on after fifth grade, and become Boy Scouts. The scoutmaster requested that the 1-185th provide a static display with which to educate the scouts on aviation, the UH-60, and general safety.

Thomas and his crew set up around the parked Black Hawk, and then conducted a question and answer session for any interested scouts. He, the copilot, and crew chief gave a tour of the helicopter to nearly 65 scouts and their families.

Scout leader Jay Hajost, of Marietta, Ga., says he was excited about having the Guard aviators present.

“I’m so glad these guys came out today. Seeing the helicopter land and getting a tour of it after was really awesome,” Hajost said. “I’m really happy we had this opportunity, we have all really learned a lot from them.”

Troop 444 is comprised of 65 scouts from Marietta’s Walker School. Among the BSA’s many goals, is training the youth in responsible citizenship, character development and self-reliance. BSA does this through a wide range of outdoor activities and educational programs, such as this weekend’s camping with the Cub Scouts.

Scoutmaster Wayne Marcinko of Marietta heads troop 444. Marcinko says he guided his son through the Boy Scouts until he aged out of the program. Marcinko, wanting to remain involved in the program, took over the position of scoutmaster eight years ago.

“My priority is the youth, my scouts,” Marcinko said. “I find great satisfaction in knowing that I am shaping and molding them into strong, self-reliant, responsible citizens. I was so happy to have the 1-185th here this weekend. This is great for the scouts, and we could not thank Thomas and his crew enough.”

The aviators seemed equally enthused to be a part of the occasion. First Lt. Joseph Barbani, Thomas’ copilot and an

engineering recruiter from Birmingham, says he enjoys these kinds of missions.

“We love doing these things, it’s really great. I love being able to bring our aircraft out to show these young folks what we do,” Barbani explained. “It gives a face to the military, to who we are as Citizen-Soldiers. They see these aircraft on television and movies, but this gives them a chance to experience it up close.”

Company C was established on Oct. 1, 2005 in Winder, Ga. Since then, it

has accumulated more than 6,000 flight hours in deployments to Iraq and Kosovo. The unit returned home from both these missions with 100 percent of their Soldiers and equipment intact. Thomas explains that Company C remains ready to fulfill any and all missions given to it, and constantly trains for future worldwide operations.

“We train everyday and every mission has training value,” Thomas said. “Whether we are flying patrols over Iraq or educating the future leaders of our state and country here at home, we are always ready to give 100 percent in every mission we are assigned.”

Story by Pfc. Andrew Badeen Photos by Sgt. Michael Uribe and Spc. Tekoa Burns124th Mobile Public Affairs DetachmentGeorgia Army National Guard

1-185Th aviaTion soars inTo boy sCouT Troop 444 Camp

November 2012 | 4

ATLANTA, Nov. 8, 2012 – Thousands of Veterans and members of the Guard and Reserve converged on the Georgia World Congress Center for a job fair featuring more than 300 prospective employers. It was the largest Veteran-specific job fair ever hosted in Georgia.

“This is amazing,” said Senior Airman Tamika Watkins, a member of the 202nd Engineering Installation Squadron - who had travelled all the way from Warner Robins, Ga., to attend the job fair. “I came here to find job leads and was overwhelmed. I bet everyone who came here left with a job; there were just so many opportunities.”

The “Troops to Trucks” program, for example, will assist Veterans in obtaining employment in transportation, a field which still struggles to fill positions.

The event was the result of cooperation between the Georgia Department of Labor, the Governor’s Office of Workforce Development, and hundreds of civilian employers from multiple industries. The job fair was initiated by Governor Nathan Deal’s announcement of new initiatives to address unemployment and underemployment of Georgia’s Veterans. The Governor also announced the creation of a website to serve as a one-stop resource for training and job listings across Georgia. At www.operationworkforce.com, Veterans can search for career centers and Veteran’s services by zip code or city. By creating a profile, Veterans can search local jobs by industry code, region, or key word search.

After the announcement of the new initiatives, Veterans were encouraged to meet with prospective employers and receive résumé coaching.

The Georgia National Guard was out in force for the event. More than 50 Army and Air Guardsmen manned information booths directing Veterans to prospective employers and training opportunities. Georgia Army and Air National Guard recruiters also met with Veterans interested in extending their service

in the Guard.“We have representatives from the Air and Army Guard as

well as financial advisors, representatives from the education office, Yellow Ribbon Program, and ESGR (Employer Support for Guard and Reserve),” said Col. Mark London, Director of Joint Family Services for the Georgia Guard. “In addition, the senior leadership of the Georgia Department of Defense was present here today and has been actively engaged with civic leaders and employers to highlight the employable skills of our Guardsmen.”

In speaking with Guardsmen at the job fair, it was common to find Soldiers and Airmen who were seeking employment resources for their fellow service members.

“This has been very positive,” said Staff Sgt. Teleo Laury, supply sergeant for the 165th Quartermaster Company based at the Clay National Guard Center in Marietta, Ga. “I have a full time job but I wanted to get help for some of my Soldiers who couldn’t make it here today. I am going to put together a summary of what I have learned and brief my Soldiers at our next drill.”

London says he hopes that the education was not confined to service members but that it might extend to employers as well.

“Employers are beginning to realize that they can receive up to $10,000 in tax credits for every Guardsman they hire,” said London. That incentive and the community outreach of our leadership is having a definite impact.”

Story and photo by 1st Lt. William CarrawayPublic Affairs OfficeGeorgia Department of Defense

GeorGia hosTs biGGesT veTerans job fair in sTaTe hisTory

For more information about employment opportunities for Ga. Guardsmen, go to: www.GuardYourBusiness.net

Senior Airman Tamika Watkins of the 202nd Engineering InstallationSquadron answers questions from WXIA 11 Alive reporter Bill Liss.

November 2012 | 65 | The Georgia Guardsman

World War I was known as the Great War, the War to End all Wars. It shook the world for four years, claiming 20 million lives. The

Armistice was signed on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. Since then, nations have commemorated that event with a moment of silence.

That moment of silence punctuates the air and focuses everyone’s attention to the service of our Veterans across the country and in locations around the world. And those Veterans encompass many different kinds of people, serving our country in many diverse ways.

This includes the National Guard. Serving as a Citizen-Soldier or -Airman, these men and women are members of the community. They work in your towns, they attend your schools, and they commit themselves to the protection of your land and to defend your freedoms against all enemies, both foreign and domestic.

The men and women of our National Guard attend annual training sessions and endure the other rigors of the military. They are cast as equals amongst other full-time military personnel in serving our country, even though this may not be their full-time occupation.

The National Guard and its predecessor militia units have fought in every national war and campaign. So it

stands that the Guard obtains its due for its service in combat, and also for serving our local communities in times of need.

This day is observed around the world and has known many names – Armistice Day, Remembrance Day and others. Where it was once a celebration specifically of the silencing of the cannons of World War I, it now marks a day when nations around the world pause and observe -- with solemn, silent pride -- the heroism of those who have served, those who are currently serving, and those who died in our country’s service, in that war and in all others. It is not a celebration of victory, but rather, as a celebration of those who made victory possible. It’s a day we keep in our minds the brave men and women of this young nation -- generations of them -- who above all else believed in and fought for a set of ideals.

They have held – and continue to hold -- these ideals above their own personal goals, laying aside jobs, comfortable home lives, and their own safety, all so that the citizens of this country might regain a sense of security in the aftermath of 21st century terrorism. They exemplify the Citizen-Soldiers and -Airmen of today’s National Guard, able to transition from the workforce to the fighting force with grace and resiliency, deft at tackling a myriad of challenges throughout the United States and the world. In this time of persistent conflict, they have endured tour after tour in distant and difficult places. They have protected us from danger, and they have given others the opportunity for a better life.

Your National Guard has heeded the call and responded to the cries of our nation and the world, volunteering to train, sacrifice and perform under pressure whenever and wherever needed. A life of service is not a peaceful one. One must transition from the normal demands of home to the intense physicality of Annual training, or perhaps domestic emergency response as first military responders, or perhaps a deployment in support of an overseas contingency and then once again return to the rigors of daily domesticity, as well as the good times spent with loved ones and friends. When they are deployed in harm’s way, there is fear and sorrow. It is a life of constant change, not only for the Soldier and Airman, but for their family.

During the last year, more than 73,000 Citizen-Soldiers and -Airmen deployed in support of operations around the world. Their contributions have been recognized with more than 3,000 bronze stars, more than 40 of which were for valor. There is no tribute, no commemoration, no praise that can truly match the magnitude of such service and sacrifice. We can but offer

By Command Sgt. Maj. James Nelson, Jr.State Command Sergeant MajorGeorgia Department of Defense

NCO NOtepad

November 2012 | 7November 2012 | 6

this humble moment of silence.Silence does not come easy in America. It is perhaps

not in our nature to be still or silent, and the world itself is neither quiet nor peaceful. Maybe that is why such a small gesture can hold so much meaning, a brief rest in the midst of our chaotic existence, a hushed respite in which one can reflect upon what truly matters.

Silence, like sleep, has a way of healing the spirit. In silence, we are able to feel the depth of the service and sacrifice of these men and women, and give them a moment of our full attention as a measure of our admiration and respect.

The resilience exhibited by these Soldiers, Airmen and their families is nothing short of remarkable. We work to help those who face the physical and psychological struggles of multiple deployments to become and remain balanced, healthy and self-confident. They are the best of us, the best of this nation. The National Guard Family is strong and has remained so for more than 375 years. Our nation is stronger for it. Your National Guard is the strength of the nation and Citizen-Soldiers and –Airmen are the strength of your National Guard. Veterans go on to provide that strength to local communities.

Supporting our Soldiers and Airmen and veterans requires a team approach by the National Guard, other government agencies, and the local community.

Ladies and gentlemen, I ask you to do what you can to help our veterans. Volunteer in your community. Get involved with local organizations that make a difference in the lives of veterans and their families. Take time each and every day to personally thank those who are serving or who have served. Consider hiring a veteran. Support Yellow Ribbon reintegration programs like Hero 2 Hired. 14.5 percent of post 9/11 Veterans (ages 20-24) are unemployed. Yet they are the future of our nation.

Let us all in a brief moment of silence honor all of the precious minutes, hours, days and years that our veterans and their families have given to serve this great country.

Veterans, both past and current, I ask you to stand. We remember the brave men and women who have

served in places such as Cowpens, Antietam, Gettysburg and San Juan Hill; in the trenches of France, the Argonne Forest, Anzio, Rome, the beaches of Normandy, the deserts of Africa; the jungles of the Philippines, Guam, Okinawa or Vietnam; the hills of Korea, the sands of Kuwait, the villages of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan.

Let us not forget our Soldiers and Airmen currently serving overseas and most recently on the shores of New York and New Jersey. Let us remember those who, because they paid the ultimate sacrifice, cannot be with us today.

In this, our moment of silence, we lift our thoughts, gratitude and prayers to our veterans. Lift your spirits to their families, and speak with your silence.

Ladies and gentlemen, please stand with all our veterans.

While it is important and proper that we mark this day with a humble silence, it is far more important we spend all our days rejoicing in their service and reminding ourselves that, because of our veterans, this country still stands. Our founding principles continue to shine. Nations around the world that once knew nothing but fear, now understand the blessings of freedom.

To you, our veterans – all of you – we say “thank you.” And like our National Guard has been for so long, we will be “Always Ready and Always There,” every time you leave and every time you come home.

7 | The Georgia Guardsman

CLAY NATIONAL GUARD CENTER, Marietta, Ga., November 3, 2012 – Command Sgt Maj. Phillip Stringfield of Tifton, Ga., assumed responsibilities as the eighth Georgia Army National Guard’s senior enlisted leader during a change-of-responsibility ceremony at the Joint Force Headquarters drill hall. Stringfield takes on this role as the Georgia Army Guard’s Command Sergeant Major from Command Sgt. Maj. James Nelson, Jr., who is retiring after 38 years of service.

“It is a humbling experience and a dream come true for me personally,” said Stringfield. “The command sergeant major is the last line of defense and the voice of enlisted Soldiers and their needs.”

The change of responsibility ceremony is a tradition in which the passing of the non-commissioned officer’s sword symbolizes the honor and duty expected of the incoming non-commissioned officer who assumes the role in leadership. The passing of the sword signifies the relinquishing of responsibility and authority from the outgoing to the incoming command sergeant major.

“It is a time-honored tradition,” said Stringfield. “To me, the sword represents trust. To hand a man a sword or knife is to trust him with your life.”

During the ceremony, there were numerous acknowledgements of the accomplishments of both outgoing

and incoming command sergeants major. “I am not here to justify (Stringfield’s) appointment as

my replacement,” said Nelson. “His deeds speak loud enough for him. My hope is that this organization will embrace and respect him as they have me and my family these past three and a half years.”

Stringfield most recently served as the 560th Battlefield Surveillance Brigade Command Sergeant Major based in Ellenwood, Ga. He has held a number of key leadership and staff positions in his 19 years of service to the Guard, ranging from squad leader to his newly appointed role as the Georgia Army National Guard Command Sergeant Major.

Nelson was appointed Army Guard Command Sergeant Major in 2009, and was assigned to the additional position of senior enlisted leader for the Georgia Department of Defense in 2010. He will maintain that Ga. DoD position through the end of 2012.

“I want to congratulate Command Sgt. Maj. Nelson on decades of service to our state and nation,” said Brig. Gen. Joe Jarrard, Assistant Adjutant General, Georgia Army National Guard. “His impact on the Soldiers of this organization will be felt for many years, and I want to thank him and his family for all they have sacrificed during his time in uniform.”

Nelson was awarded the Legion of Merit Medal, and his wife, Patricia, received the Georgia Meritorious Service Medal. Additionally, the command sergeants major of the Georgia Army Guard’s major commands presented Nelson with a replica of a 1774 “Brown Bess” Musket, carried by Minutemen during the Revolutionary War.

Story by Spc. Steven BennettPhoto by Sgt. Jerry De Avila124th Mobile Public Affairs DetachmentGeorgia Army National Guard

nelson relinquishes responsibiliTy as GeorGia army naTional Guard Csm

November 2012 | 9November 2012 | 8

Team joinTsTars holds annual family day

ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Warner Robins, Ga., Nov. 3, 2012 – Saturday was a day of celebration for Team JSTARS as the unit marked its 10th annual Family Day. According to the 116th Air Control Wing leadership, the event was designed to provide Airmen, Soldiers and civilians the opportunity to spend the day with their families and thank them for their support.

“It was an awesome way to say thanks to the ones who support us the most,” said Col. Kevin Clotfelter, the 116th’s commander.

Throughout the day, families were able to tour an E-8C Joint STARS aircraft, with aircrews from the 128th and 16th Airborne Command and Control squadrons explaining how Team JSTARS works together to support ground combat commanders around the world.

“It was a lot of fun,” said 1st Lt. Robert Belus, 116th Air Combat Communications Squadron. “The kids, obviously, were really excited to see, and hear about, what their parents do every day.”

Inside the children’s hangar was a hub of activity with

inflatable games, cotton candy and a life-size replica of the Batmobile. Outside, the weather provided a perfect backdrop for both the 5K “Runway Fun Run and Walk” and for those who instead opted for the car and motorcycle show.

As part of this year’s family day, members of the 116th Medical Group (MDG) and Soldiers from Marietta’s Joint Task Force 781 CBRNE medical element, displayed their equipment and explained the jobs that they do in supporting Defense Support to Civil Authority missions for the Georgia Guard.

“The response of the people has been excellent,” said Master Sgt. Benny Smith, a 116th MDG Airman, and a medical logistics technician with JTF 781. “There are many people out there who don’t know we have these capabilities in the state of Georgia.”

Colonel Dean Worley, who commands the 461st Air Control Wing – the 116th ACW’s counterpart – attributed the day’s turnout of more than 1,400 wing members to the planning and hard work of the volunteers who put the event together.

“Much like the planning that goes into every mission in which we’re involved, they these volunteers gave it their all to make this family day a great one,” Worley said. “It was indeed a big success, and to everyone who made it happen, I say, ‘well done.’”

Story by Tech. Sgt. Regina Young116th Air Control WingGeorgia Air National Guard

The Battles of Sharpsburg and Second Manassas highlight brilliant generalship in defense and maneuver.

The carnage of Fredericksburg reveals the nadir of Civil War leadership at a time when Union prospects were the lowest of the war. It was a battle of engineers, snipers, and rapidly deploying artillery. But it also evoked the leadership trap of refusing to change one’s plans in the face of failure.

FOR WANT OF pONTOONSIn November, 1862, Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside,

newly appointed commander of the Army of the Potomac, launched a campaign to strike south, cross the Rappahannock River at Fredericksburg and drive for the Confederate capitol of Richmond. In order to effect the crossing, Burnside arranged for pontoon bridges to be transported to Fredericksburg. Unfortunately, as Burnside assembled his army on Stafford Heights overlooking Fredericksburg from the east, his pontoons were stuck in transit. The slowness of the maneuvers allowed Robert E. Lee to prepare defensive positions on Marye’s heights west of Fredericksburg. A portion of this line was anchored with a stone wall behind which he positioned infantry units three-deep. To the south of the Heights, Lee positioned the corps of Lt. Gen. Thomas Jackson. As Burnside waited for his errant pontoons, Confederate artillerists covered the entire field.

CIvIL WAR MOUTBy the time Burnside’s bridges arrived, Lee was deeply

entrenched on the key terrain. The Confederate brigade of Mississippi’s Brig. Gen William Barksdale deployed into the city of Fredericksburg and took up firing positions.

As dawn broke on December 11, the sound of hammer falls drifting across the Rappahannock heralded the work of the engineers. The sound was soon joined by Barksdale’s rifles which raked the engineers and rendered their positions untenable.

Union artillery unleashed shot and shell into

Fredericksburg, but Barksdale’s stubborn snipers took up firing positions in cellars and were thus protected from the bombardment. After 14 hours, the Union sent a landing party of 150 infantrymen across the river to secure a bridgehead. The Soldiers executed the river crossing, moved into skirmish lines, and began to maneuver against Barksdale’s positions.

The Confederates gave ground slowly as the fighting shifted to the streets of Fredericksburg.

In a scene familiar to the modern warrior, Union troops entered into military operations in urban terrain (MOUT) and conducted building clearing operations as Union engineers resumed construction on the pontoon bridges. By the evening of December 11, four Union brigades had crossed the Rappahannock. It would take 36-hours for Burnside to cross the rest of his army and organize.

ThE DIE IS CASTThe fog dissipated to reveal the staging positions of

Union forces to the awaiting Confederates. As the armies prepared for the attack, a lone cannon boomed to the south sending enfilade fire into the Union ranks. Major John Pelham had moved a single cannon forward and from his extremely isolated position fired a shell that paralyzed an entire Union corps. Uncertain of the forces arrayed in Pelham’s vicinity, Union cannons attempted to suppress the fire. After exhausting his ammunition, Pelham withdrew. He had so unnerved the enemy that an entire division would remain in place to secure the flank against possible attack effectively putting 6,000 troops out of action.

Jackson’s forces occupied favorable ground; however, the division of George Gordon Meade was able to maneuver forces into a swamp which formed a gap in Jackson’s lines. Meade’s men pierced Jackson’s lines but had to withdraw due to insufficient support from adjacent units. As Union troops withdrew, the Confederates unleashed a ferocious counterattack.

Colonel Edmund Atkinson’s Georgia Brigade smashed into Meade’s flank and routed it. Not content with reestablishing the former lines, Atkinson’s jubilant Georgians pressed forward for a quarter mile onto ground that would be remembered as the “slaughter pen.” In the ensuing action, Atkinson was wounded and captured.

9 | The Georgia Guardsman

Fredericksburg: Union low tide on the banks of the Rappahannock

By 1st. Lt. William CarrawayPublic Affairs OfficeGeorgia Department of Defense

A ChICkEN COULD NOT LIvE ON ThAT FIELD WhEN WE OpEN ON IT

Hearing the sound of cannon fire to the south and encouraged by early reports of success, Burnside assumed Lee must be shifting troops to reinforce his right. Burnside began to funnel troops from Fredericksburg to assault Marye’s Heights. Attacking troops had to cross a channel of water five feet wide and three feet deep. After crossing the channel, 500 yards of open ground would separate the Union attackers from their objective: the stone wall and cannons of Marye’s Heights.

In closing that distance, the Union forces would be exposed to the artillery of Lt. Col. E Porter Alexander who had informed General Longstreet:

“We cover that ground now so well that we will comb it as with a fine-tooth comb. A chicken could not live on that field when we open on it.”

The first Union brigade to assault was commanded by Brig. Gen. Nathan Kimball of Brig. Gen. William French’s division. Kimball’s Soldiers were halted 125 yards from their objective by withering artillery and musket fire. The brigade suffered 25% casualties including Kimball. As

Kimball’s survivors clung to the ground, successive assaults launched by French’s brigades suffered 50% casualties without getting any closer than Kimball’s limit of advance.

I WILL kILL ThEM ALL BEFORE ThEY REACh MY LINEThe Union objective was defended by Georgians under

command of Savannah native Maj. Gen. Lafayette McClaws. McClaws had two brigades of Georgians under command of Brig. Gen. Paul Semmes and Brig. Gen. Thomas Cobb. These Georgians, supported by artillery emplacements on the heights, defended against four divisions which were funneled brigade by brigade into a conveyor belt of lead and death.

Surveying the formations of attacking troops, General Robert E. Lee expressed concern to Lt. Gen. James Longstreet, commanding first corps, over the possibility of an overwhelming attack. Longstreet famously replied:

“General, if you put every man on the other side of the Potomac on that field to approach me over the same line, and give me plenty of ammunition, I will kill them all before they reach my line.”

WE ShOULD GROW TOO FOND OF ITBefore Jackson’s lines, the shattered ranks of Meade’s

division had fallen back to their original positions, leaving clusters of sky-blue clad corpses littering the fields, swamps, and railroad cuts. To the North, 7,500 Union casualties littered the ground as the sun set and temperatures dropped. That evening, the aurora borealis blazed over the battlefield lending its astral ballet to the horror that lay below.

Moved by the appalling casualties, Robert E. Lee remarked:

“It is well that war is so terrible, otherwise we should grow too fond of it.”

WAR SO TERRIBLEThe casualty rolls from Fredericksburg defy

comprehension. The Union suffered nearly 13,000 casualties without moving the Confederates an inch. The South lost just 5,000, the majority of these occurring in Jackson’s lines.

Cobb, who had encouraged his Georgians from behind the stone wall, had been mortally wounded in the thigh by a shell and bled to death on the field. Seven months later, Semmes would fall leading his men at Gettysburg. Coincidentally, he would also be fatally struck in the thigh.

The battle would have immediate negative consequences in the North. Burnside was swiftly replaced. Northern morale was at its lowest, and criticism of the Lincoln administration rose to a fever pitch.

The Battle of Fredericksburg remains an almost incomprehensible lesson in poor leadership and coordination of effort. It further offers a caution to leaders who fail to adjust their plans to meet the reality on the ground.

November 2012 | 10

CLAY NATIONAL GUARD CENTER, Marietta, Ga., Nov. 15, 2012 – For Staff Sgt. Mark Morrison, information technology (IT) has been a part of life since childhood. His parents bought him a computer when he was six years old, and he says it wasn’t long before he was tearing it apart to figure out “how it worked.” Making the transition from tinkering with home electronics to enlisting in the Georgia National Guard as a 25 Charlie (Radio Operator/Maintainer) was an easy choice for Morrison.

“Coming out of high school, the IT field was alluring, but I didn’t want to get stuck at a desk fielding service calls,” said Morrison, a full-time network administrator for Marietta’s 78th Homeland Response Force (HRF). “I knew the military would let me get real hands-on training with some really exciting equipment.”

Starting out as a radio operator/maintainer gave him the basics for signal support systems, but over the next 10 years, he would go on to pick up two more IT specialties. Today, Morrison is a 25 Bravo (Information Systems) and 25 Uniform (Signal Support Systems) instructor for the 122nd Regional Training Institute (RTI) here at Clay.

“Teaching has been one of the most unexpected rewards of my career,” he explained. “Enriching Soldiers’ understanding never gets old, at least not with me. When I see them graduate at the end of their training cycle, I can’t tell you how proud I am to know that they’re completely capable of doing their jobs.”

Morrison’s yearning to get out from behind a desk did not end with becoming an instructor. He has deployed twice with Georgia’s 48th Infantry Brigade Combat Team – first to Iraq in 2005-2006, and then to Afghanistan in 2009-2010. The mission of his section was to provide voice and data connectivity for the brigade, its elements, and his fellow Soldiers.

Something for which he felt an enormous amount of responsibility, he says.

“When you’re overseas, you take things very seriously,”

Morrison said. “What you’re doing could directly impact a unit receiving mission essential information and resources. As cliché as it sounds, it could mean life or death.”

When he’s not teaching or deploying overseas, Morrison and his fellow IT specialists spend their time maintaining and operating mission essential communications equipment for Georgia. During defense support of civil authorities (DSCA) operations, the Georgia Guard’s signal team uses satellite communication trucks to assist local, state and federal first responders as they go about their missions of assisting communities engaged in a crisis.

“We can roll in and provide immediate connectivity for anyone responding to an emergency,” he explained. “Our equipment has ‘cross-banding’ capabilities that allow different departments and organizations to communicate across all the various frequencies and channels being used.”

Although he has been doing his job for years, Morrison says the nature of IT is always changing. He says he is always working on new skill certifications and has not lost his penchant for discovering new ways in which to use technology.

“I learn something new everyday,” he said. “There’s nothing in the world I’d rather be doing than getting better at my job, as a Citizen-Soldier, and as an IT specialist.”

11 | The Georgia Guardsman

Story and photo by Spc. Ashley FontenotPublic Affairs OfficeGeorgia Department of Defense

siGnal serGeanT’s Childhood fasCinaTion wiTh TeChnoloGy serves him well in The Guard

November2012 | 12

On the eleventh hour, of the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918, a ceasefire was established on the Western Front once the armistice was

signed. November 11th was declared a holiday to honor and remember those who served in the armed forces and were killed during the War.

September 1918, both the 1st and 2nd Battalions of the 121st Infantry Regiment from the Georgia National Guard were activated for service during the Great War later known as World War I. Upon arrival to France in October, much of the unit was separated and assigned to units needing replacements Soldiers and sent to the front lines. Though much of the unit had been separated, Company F of the 2nd Battalion along with companies B and C of the 1st Battalion traveled to Europe and were all assigned to the 151st Machine Gun Battalion of the 42nd Division.

The 42nd Infantry Division, also known as the “Rainbow Division,” was comprised of the best National Guard troops nationwide. The best Georgia National Guard Soldiers comprised of members from the 2nd Georgia Infantry, Macon Hussars, Macon Volunteers and Macon Floyd Rifles, which formed the 151st Machine Gun Battalion. The battalion was deployed for almost 18 months, while being in range of German Artillery for nearly 194 days and was engaged with the enemy for 167 days. After the November 11 Armistice was signed, the battalion served an additional 140 days in country. During the war, the unit lost 47 men who were killed in action, 10 later died from wounds sustained in combat, and 385 were wounded in action. In addition, nine men died of diseases and one Soldier was listed missing in action, putting the unit’s total losses at 452 Soldiers participating in the war.

The 151st Machine Gun Battalion later returned to Camp Gordon, Georgia along with Company D of the Pennsylvania National Guard. The Soldiers were welcomed back to a parade, dance and a luncheon put together by the ladies of the 151st Machine Gun Battalion Auxiliary.

Atlanta also acknowledged the Battalion with parades and events in the state capitol where they fell in formation for the last time.

Soon after, the Battalion was deactivated and disbanded but the tradition of duty and sacrifice of the 151st Machine Gun Battalion lives on through today’s 48th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, whose headquarters is in Macon, Ga.

According to an operations order issued by the 42nd Infantry of the New York Guard’s Historic Rainbow Division, commands coming back state side from World War I were told :

“May each man, as he returns to his home and the loved ones who waited so patiently and courageously for his return, find there the true gold which lies at the end of the rainbow.” Armistice Day was changed to Veterans Day after the

end of World War II in the United States and Remembrance Day in British Commonwealth of Nations. Veterans Day pays homage to all living and dead American Veterans who sacrificed to keep this country free.

Story by Sgt. 1st Class Gerard BrownPublic Affairs OfficeGeorgia Department of Defense

The GeorGia Guard and veTerans day

November 2012 | 1413 | The Georgia Guardsman

November 2012 | 14

CLAY NATIONAL GUARD CENTER, Marietta, Ga., Nov. 15, 2012 – Georgia Army Guard heavy-lift helicopters and crews sent to assist with the massive relief mounted in the wake of superstorm Sandy are back home now at Savannah’s Hunter Army Airfield – though recovery efforts in places like New York, New Jersey and Connecticut continue to help residents get their lives back to some sense of normalcy.

“Moving critical supplies and people needed to keep the relief and recovery efforts going, and getting needed food and water supplies to Sandy’s victims, is the kind of mission we train all the time to do to support civil authorities during times of national crisis,” said Chief Warrant Officer 4 Charles Woodward. “Coordination for an operation like this between the Guard, the active duty assets engaged by the Department of Defense, and New York and New Jersey’s governments is by no means an easy task, but in the end it all came together and worked out right.”

Woodward, who commands Savannah’s Detachment 2, Company B, 935th Aviation Support Battalion, oversaw the New York missions flown by one of the CH-47F Chinooks from Savannah’s Detachment 1, Company B, 169th General Support Aviation Brigade. Another Georgia Guard Chinook, which flew missions in support of relief efforts in New Jersey, was piloted by Chief Warrant Officer 3 William Johnson, the 169th’s operations officer and Chief Warrant Officer 4 Timothy Ladson, the unit’s training officer and one of its instructor pilots.

GeorGia Guardsmen, Chinooks reTurn from sandy relief mission

Story by Sgt. 1st Class Roy Henry, Public Affairs Office, Georgia Department of DefensePhotos by Staff Sgt. David Carbajal, Public Affairs Office, Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst

and Tech. Sgt Brian Christiansen, Public Affairs Office, North Carolina National Guard

The trio, their crews and aircraft operated as part of Operation Sandy from Oct. 30 to Nov. 8, with two aircraft returning home Nov. 8 from New Jersey, the third arriving from New York and touching down at Hunter two days later.

Hurricane Sandy gained superstorm status after merging with two other weather systems, killing more than 100 people in 10 states as a result.

While Sandy wrought havoc in states like Connecticut, the worst of its fury was felt in New York and New Jersey where beach towns were flooded and power to thousands of homes and businesses were knocked out. Electrical power to more than two million New York customers alone was interrupted.

Georgia’s Chinooks and aircrews (about 20 personnel) flew support missions out of Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst – a combination of McGuire Air Force Base, the Army’s Fort Dix, and Naval Air Engineering Station Lakehurst in New Jersey, established in 2009.

They were among the 14 Army Chinooks, UH-60 Black Hawks, UH-72A Lakotas and an Air Guard HH-60 Pave Hawk rescue helo and crews that conducted more than 200 flight hours in moving priority supplies and personnel where they were needed not long after superstorm Sandy struck, and again after a severe winter storm blanketed the

Northeast with snow and nearly freezing temperatures.

The Georgia contingent, part of the National Guard’s Task Force Guardian 1, had staged out of a flight facility in Raleigh, N.C., before moving north and conducting operations.

According to statistics provided to the Ga. DoD Joint Operations Center by Capt. Michael Viskup, assistant air operations officer for Marietta’s 78th Aviation Troop Command (the 169th’s main headquarters here at Clay), Woodward and his fellow aviators, for six of the ten days they were gone: flew 18 sorties for a total estimated 62.9 flight hours, transported 211 emergency response and other personnel, and moved more than 22,000 pounds of cargo

Woodward, who participated in similar missions during relief and recovery efforts in 2005 when Katrina devastated New Orleans and the Gulf coast, says one of the big differences he

saw was the accessibility“Flood waters during Katrina, it

seemed, isolated more people, thereby calling for more use of air assets for extraction,” he explained. “With Sandy, ground approaches to those places where flooding took place – while most certainly as destructive – didn’t seem to hamper the use of vehicle recovery assets in those areas as badly.”

While Georgia’s role in Operation Sandy has ended, the aircrews and machines continue training for whatever challenge Mother Nature – and man – might next decide to throw their way.

“Whether that happens here at home or out of state, we’re ready to assist wherever disaster strikes,” Woodward said. “Being ‘always ready, always there,’ isn’t just something we say to impress people. It’s something we’re seriously committed to each and every day.”

An aerial view of storm and fire damage along the coast of New York from a Georgia Army National Guard CH-47 Chinook heavy-lift helicopter during a flight from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J., Nov 3, 2012.

15 | The Georgia Guardsman

Members of the Georgia Army National Guard prepare their CH-47 Chinook heavy-lift helicopter for a flight from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J. to Staten Island, N.Y.

November 2012 | 16

As we gather to honor our veterans

on this armistice anniversary, let us not forget the many living veterans – of the National Guard and all other U.S. military components – who could use our help.

As we look forward to Thanksgiving, it’s worth remembering that sometimes “giving thanks” means showing, rather

than telling, that we are thankful. And as we prepare to take a respite from work for

Veterans Day and Thanksgiving, let us not forget the Veterans who would be thankful to have any work at all.

Just a few months ago, the Veteran unemployment rate was nearly twice the national average. Young Veterans who joined the military after high school and went off to war are often at a disadvantage when competing for civilian jobs with peers who didn’t serve. While some veterans don’t have easily translatable civilian skills, or a network of civilian business and social contacts, that’s less true of Guardsmen – who usually serve in their military capacity part-time and maintain a full-time civilian occupation.

Hiring a Guardsman is smart business, but it takes companies placing a priority on hiring Veterans. Our Guardsmen possess a strong work ethic borne of shared sacrifice and duty you cannot pick up in a classroom. This quality makes them exactly what employers are looking for, and we appreciate the strong response we’ve had so far from local businesses.

Indeed, we’ve seen the unemployment rate amongst Georgia’s Guardsmen drop significantly over the past year – though there is much more work to be done to accomplish the goal of finding every unemployed Guardsman gainful employment.

And there are other challenges facing our Veterans

and Guardsmen that require our attention.One out of every three Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans

suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a traumatic brain injury (TBI) or a combination of the two due to combat trauma. Upon returning home, our troops need to receive the proper medical and psychological evaluation or counseling. It’s up to them to seek the help they need, but this help is often not easy to find or access. So it falls to us to help point them in the right direction.

Most people think Veterans are automatically enrolled in the VA; they aren’t. When they finish their military service, they need help finding VA facilities, completing complicated applications, managing the application process and appealing rejected claims. What we need to avoid is a situation where many Veterans who are disabled and unable to work due to war trauma end up waiting any longer than they have to for benefits they were promised and have earned.

A third of all homeless citizens in America are Veterans. Due to many of the factors discussed here, Veterans with distinguished, even heroic, military records are ending up living on the streets. Because of untreated PTSD or TBI and self-medication with drugs and alcohol, some Veterans are finding themselves in conflict with the criminal justice system. Special Veterans Courts are the appropriate response to these problems.

The challenges facing our veterans are serious, and the National Veterans Foundation has helped our brothers and sisters in uniform with these problems and more for 25 years. In that time, they have served more than 350,000 Vets and their family members. If you know of a Veteran in need of help, please have them call the Lifeline for Vets™ at 888-777-4443.

We should endeavor to provide our Veterans with a reason to be thankful this season. Remember, Veterans Day is more than a break from work, it’s a solemn anniversary the nation sets aside for honoring those who have served in uniform – for honoring those who have risked their lives so that all Americans may enjoy today’s freedoms and posterity.

And it is in that spirit that I ask you to look to services like the ones mentioned above to help make sure the same veterans who helped secure our peace and prosperity are guaranteed the same.

17 | The Georgia Guardsman

TaG’s veTerans day messaGe

By Maj. Gen. Jim ButterworthGeorgia’s Adjutant General

November 2012 | 18

By Col. Tom Carden, Commander, 560th Battlefield Surveillance Brigade Georgia Army National Guard

Strengths Based Leadership highlights a significant body of research that took more than 50 years for the Gallup scientists to complete. Unlike many leadership

works, Rath and Conchie focus less on theory and more on successful leaders as well as followers. The book is very succinct and makes its key points right up front.

One of the key arguments offered early in the introduction involves the necessity of investing in the strengths of employees versus simply focusing developmental efforts on weaknesses. The natural tendency to invest in employee development by focusing on weaknesses can lead to employees losing confidence and becoming less productive. Focusing on employee strengths increases employee self-confidence and long-term productivity.

Rath and Conchie also address the need for leaders to do a good self-assessment and of not falling into the trap of trying to be good at everything, as this breeds mediocrity.

The book also addresses the pitfall of leaders trying to mimic the leadership styles of other people they admire. The importance of leaders developing self-awareness and playing to their strengths, according to the authors, cannot be overstated.

The leader self-awareness research feeds right into the recommendation of building well-rounded teams. Rath and Conchie challenge leaders to leverage their self-awareness in selecting their team members. Team building is an essential task for every leader.

The authors encourage leaders to avoid stacking his, or her, team with people who act, think and behave like themselves. This particular error lends itself to group-think and limits growth, adaptability and change.

Part two of the book examines four distinct domains of leadership strengths: executing, influencing, relationship building and strategic thinking. Rath and Conchie defined these strengths, and then tied them to specific examples.

They examine Wendy Kopp, founder and CEO of Teach America, within the context of the executing theme; Simon Cooper, president of The Ritz Carlton, under the influencing theme; Mervyn Davies, chairman of Standard Chartered Bank, in the area of relationship building; and Brad Anderson, CEO of Best Buy, under the theme of strategic thinking. These living examples brought leadership theory to life by demonstrating how real leaders applied their strengths by leveraging individuals, team, talent and scarce resources toward solving serious problems.

Rath and Conchie take on an essential aspect of leading that many books on leadership overlook, and that is the followers. Regardless of one’s leadership title or position, one is not truly leading unless someone is following.

Careful research was completed to have followers identify what they need and expect from their leaders. Four basic needs were identified: trust, compassion, stability, and hope. Trust is identified as the “do or die” foundation for leading. Compassion is defined as demonstrating genuine concern for those you lead, and makes a huge difference in employee satisfaction, productivity and development. Stability is described in terms of providing employees with some sense of security, support, confidence, and predictability. Finally, creating a sense of hope and optimism within a team increases the chances of success.

Strengths Based Leadership is well worth the time and energy to read. It is not very long or complicated. The book includes some timeless leader lessons that are helpful to review, whether you are planning to take over your first leadership position, or if you have been leading for many years.

professional developmenT bookshelf:reviews of books ThaT TeaCh us abouT our CrafT

GEORGIA GARRISON TRAINING CENTER, hinesville, Ga., Nov. 4, 2012 – More than 400 Georgia State Defense Force (GSDF) volunteers travelled from their homes across Georgia to meet at Fort Stewart in order to participate in the GSDF’s Annual Training (AT). The event created a realistic exercise putting the totality of each unit’s training into action.

“AT 2012 was designed as a force-wide search and rescue (SAR) mission run as an Army Readiness Training Evaluation Program (ARTEP),” said Lt. Col. Lan Skalla, the GSDF’s Chief Operations Division G3. “The concept was to create as realistic an exercise as possible to be run in real-time.”

The exercise began with the issuance of a SITREP on Oct. 28, 2012, mobilizing units to travel to the Georgia Garrison Training Center with mission orders published at Friday evening on Nov. 2. The scenario primarily consisted of a confirmed plane crash. There were four known passengers aboard. “Witnesses” claimed to have seen two deployed parachutes, so there was the possibility of survivors. Manifest details were not available, so searchers were looking for items of a sensitive nature and treating the area as a crime scene.

Elements of the GSDF’s 1st, 4th, and 5th Brigades were each assigned an insertion point and the four-digit grid corner of their respective SAR area. The training areas were “salted” with aircraft parts, simulated narcotics, clothing, personal items, training weapons,

19 | The Georgia Guardsman

“AT 2012 was designed as a

force-wide search and rescue

mission run as an Army

readiness Training evaluation

Program. The concept was to

create as realistic an exercise

as possible to be run in

real-time.”-- Lt. CoL. Lan SkaLLa

Story and photo by Capt. Andy CreedCover photo by Warrant Officer 1 Jim ZegersPublic Affairs OfficeGeorgia State Defense Force

GeorGia sdf uses annual TraininG To praCTiCe sar and medevaC missions

Photo by SDF Warrant Officer 1 Jim Zegers

November 2012 | 20

suitcases, mannequins with flight suits and parachutes, and simulated IEDs. Approximately 320 SDF members moved into the field to conduct the search with another 92 performing service and support functions.

As search operations were initiated, elements of the 4th Brigade deployed to set up and operate two landing zones (LZs), one at the forward operating base (FOB) and a second at Donovan Field. A HH-60M MEDEVAC from the Georgia Army National Guard’s Company C, 1-111th General Support Aviation Battalion (GSAB), headquartered at Clay National Guard Center in Marietta, Ga., arrived at the field LZ.

Army flight medic Sgt 1st Class Vince Battaglia conducted training of the GSDF personnel and responded to their questions involving MEDEVAC operations and operating with H-60 aircraft in general. Teams of GSDF stretcher-bearers were then instructed and received hands-on training on how to load casualties onto the HH-60M under the watchful eye of Battaglia and assisted by Army crew chief Sgt. Billy Ashley.

After multiple successful rounds of training to load patients onto the helicopter, it was time to perform live. The SAR teams in the field had located the “victims” from the plane crash by that time, and had called in multiple nine-line MEDEVAC reports. The Army pilot-in-command, Chief Warrant Officer Lance Wasdin, and co-pilot Chief Warrant Officer 2 Greg Delgado had rotors engaged and the aircraft off the deck within 11 minutes.

“Victims” were then transported from the field LZ to Donovan Field at the Georgia Garrison Training Center where they were received and treated by the GSDF medical battalion. Each team was afforded the opportunity to load and unload casualties from the HH-60 with rotors turning.

The LZ operations were a complete success and the training received was as real as it gets.

The GSDF’s vigilance and situational awareness were put on display when a report was received that a 3.5” rocket had been discovered by SDF members in the field and then “killed off” by Fort Stewart Explosive Ordinance Disposal personnel. As that report was being forwarded to the Fort Stewart Military Police, another report came in about six rounds of what was described as 20mm ammo. As that report was being processed, another report came in of an additional 3.5” rocket round. At that time, the

decision was made to cancel further training in the field and all SDF members were withdrawn.

In all, the GSDF identified:• Two 3.5” rocket rounds, circa 1950-1960’s• A rifle grenade circa 1960’s• And 21 rounds – 25mm Bradley practice tracer ammo

All were detonated safely due to proper actions by GSDF field leaders and troops, and there were no injuries.

AT 2012 was a complete success. Readiness was evaluated both in training and logistics for a full-force deployment to meet assigned Force Support Packages (FSP) as well as actions as part of the Disaster Rapid Response Force (DRRF). Discovery of live unexploded ordnance in the SDF training areas highlighted the ability to adjust and respond to events as they occur. Even in an exercise scenario, troops must maintain situational awareness at all times to perform at their best and keep everyone safe.

CLAY NATIONAL GUARD CENTER, Marietta, Ga., November 20, 2012 – State defense forces may well hold the key for states looking to maintain high levels of emergency response preparedness without bloating their budget. Twenty-two states currently have volunteer state guard units. These units, usually referred to as state defense forces (SDFs), offer a vital, low-cost (and sometimes free) force-multiplier for the National Guard and homeland security resources.

While SDFs might not seem like a vital need in states with a low risk of natural disasters or terror attacks, several states that are at high risk for catastrophes have yet to create a modern state defense force. And there are other states, still, that do have SDFs but do not quite leverage them to their full potential.

With state and federal budgets shrinking, states can no longer afford to place establishment and use of their SDF on the sidelines. Four national security analysts, including two retired SDF officers, recently explored this dilemma and sought out to explain how SDFs work, and why they are

invaluable to so many states—and to the country.The findings of Jessica Zuckerman, Colonel Martin

Hershkowitz, Brigadier General Frederic N. Smalkin and James Jay Carafano, Ph.D., are worth a read, but their basic point is this:

“With the Cold War over, the nation and the states face different threats. Rather than preparing to fight Communism, the United States is now faced with an entirely different threat, that of radical Islamists who use terror as a weapon. This threat, coupled with the ever-present risk of natural disasters, has created an increased need among the states to strengthen and augment their homeland security capabilities. With the recent high mobilization rates among the nation’s National Guard forces, both as units and as individuals, due to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, forward-thinking governors and TAGs have begun looking to their SDFs as force multipliers, providing key elements of all-hazards homeland security for their states.”Such is the case here in Georgia, where the Georgia State

21 | The Georgia Guardsman

TappinG sTaTe defense forCes To deCrease defense spendinG

By Warrant Officer 1 Seth G. Stuck | Public Affairs Office | Georgia State Defense Force

Defense Force not only augments the National Guard in scenarios ranging from search and rescue missions, to pre-mobilization training, to MEDEVAC training exercises, to honor guards and other ceremonial honors, to biohazard emergency response training – but also provides free, in-house training and certification on mission-essential tasks like CPR, first aid, and rappelling. The GSDF also augments the Georgia Guard’s public affairs and JAG operations, again, at virtually no cost to the state.

The force has a core of former service veterans and is staffed entirely of volunteers who offer their own personal time on their own personal

dime to serve as a force multiplier for their National Guard and community.

These SDF members aren’t just more “boots on the ground” – though that alone is valuable enough – they’re also volunteers who, in many cases, offer skill sets worth hundreds of dollars per hour to augment the Georgia National Guard’s regular operations.

Indeed, most SDFs have medical units, engineering units, JAG units, communications units, search and rescue units (which are National Association for Search and Rescue (NASAR) and/or Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) qualified), and even a chaplaincy – all

of which are designed to nest within a domestic National Guard operation or training exercise as a force multiplier.

By way of example, the Georgia Army National Guard’s Col. Thomas Carden, Commander of the 560th Battlefield Surveillance Brigade, estimates that the GSDF providing volunteer role-players for his pre-mobilization training facilities saves him approximately a half-million dollars per year in costs he would otherwise have to pay contractors to provide the same service.

Suffice it to say, in any instance where a state or the National Guard might consider contracting a civilian organization to provide a for-pay

defense service, it should instead first consider if a state defense force can provide the same service at no cost.

What’s more, unlike other federal forces, SDFs are continually resident within their respective states and can be called up by the adjutant general on behalf of the governor quickly and easily in times of need. SDFs are also exempt from the restrictions of the Posse Comitatus Act, which prohibits troops in federal service under Title 10 from engaging in domestic law enforcement activities – though that is rarely an obstacle for National Guard forces, and rightfully so. As the commander of a state’s military department, the adjutant general also

directs – or works with his/her FEMA partner to direct – state emergency response. Through the adjutant general and the state’s joint staff, an SDF can easily coordinate with other key components of the state emergency response.

In recent years, SDFs have proven their value as vital force providers to homeland security and emergency responses. After 9/11, for instance, the New York State Guard, the New York Naval Militia, and the New Jersey Naval Militia were activated to assist in response, recovery, and critical infrastructure security. An estimated 2,274 SDF personnel participated in recovery efforts

after Hurricane Katrina. SDFs have also provided critical infrastructure protection since 9/11.

The point is a simple one: In a day and age where state governments are looking every which way to find budget savings, why not look at doing more with state defense forces? The formula works here in Georgia, allowing the Georgia Department of Defense to do more for less – and you can bet that in each state, including Georgia, there are a host of additional people who would love to volunteer their time to directly support their community, their state, and their National Guard in the tradition of this nation’s militia.

November 2012 | 22

kAISERSLAUTERN, Germany, Nov. 13, 2012 – U.S. Army Africa and 21st Theater Sustainment Command’s 5th Quartermaster Detachment jointly conducted an aerial delivery familiarization event Nov. 5-8 on Rhine Ordnance Barracks with U.S., African and Italian Soldiers.

The purpose of the familiarization was to refine and rehearse aerial delivery tactics, techniques and procedures to be applied during two major upcoming exercises - Central Accord 13 and Flintlock 13.

African partnership nations participating in the event were Cameroon and Mauritania. There were representatives from the Italian Army as well as U.S. Soldiers from the 824th Quartermasters, 10th Special Forces Group, 560th Battlefield Surveillance Brigade and 11th Aviation Brigade.

“I think this familiarization is a great opportunity, because it allows us to associate soldiers from partnership nations with low-cost, low-altitude (LCLA) delivery system prior to the exercise, which makes things easier. It’s also good to meet with some of the soldiers we will be working side-by-side with during the exercise and build a relationship with them,” said Chief Warrant Officer 2 Orlando Velez, an airdrop assistant technician for the 5th Quartermaster (QM) aerial delivery section and a native of Westchester, N.Y.

“This familiarization is important, because instead of 5th QM showing up in Africa during the exercise and taking two weeks to familiarize 50 soldiers about LCLA, they had the opportunity to familiarize a handful of Soldiers who now can take what they’ve learned back and teach their people prior to the exercise,” said Walter L. Murrell, an exercise planner for U.S. Army Africa (USARAF) and a Melbourne, Fla., native.

During the four-day event, the 5th QMs introduced partnership nation soldiers to the LCLA delivery system. They, along with U.S. Soldiers, were subsequently introduced to the free-drop-delivery system (FDS).

The Low-Cost Aerial Delivery System (LCADS) is

a suite of expendable parachute and container air items designed to be a low-cost alternative to older aerial delivery equipment.

The system can be used for either A low-velocity (descent rate of 28.5 feet-per-second or less) or high-velocity (descent rate of 50-90 feet-per-second) airdrop of all classes of supply from typical container delivery system altitudes and payloads.

LCLA parachutes are a specialized subset of LCADS and have the same low-cost, expendable attributes. They are uniquely suited to support Soldiers operating in harsh, austere locations, such as the mountainous terrain of Afghanistan. LCLA capabilities are designed for delivering payloads between 80 and 1,000 lbs. at altitudes below 500 feet above ground level. LCLA is a one-time use system.

The FDS is one facet of LCLA aerial resupply that requires no parachute. Instead, FDS is an innovative packaging system whereby supplies can be free dropped at low altitudes.

According to Murrell, learning the low-cost process of getting supplies to soldiers engaged in peacetime and other than peacetime operations is very important to partnership nations.

“This familiarization is specifically good for our special forces, said Cpt. Adgnau Babe, a soldier with the Mauritanian Army. “We like the material we were introduced to, because it’s new and efficient, and it’s a good way to deliver assistance to our soldiers.”

“I am glad we had the opportunity to learn about this new system, and now I will take what I have learned back to my superiors and tell them how much this could help us in our future operations,” said Sgt. Maj. Roberto Bose, an Italian special forces soldier.

Participants also received a small portion of pathfinder training and were allowed to apply what they learned about aerial delivery systems as they set it up and broke it down several times.

Towards the end of the familiarization, partnership soldiers prepared and assembled four LCLA system bundles and, on the final day, they watched exactly how the systems worked as their bundles were dropped from a C-130 Hercules.

23 | The Georgia Guardsman

Story and photo Staff Sgt. Michael J. TaylorPublic Affairs Office21st Theater Sustainment Command

riGGers hosT familiarizaTion evenT wiTh inTernaTional parTners

November2012 | 24

“This whole experience for me was fantastic, because I feel like I’ve learned so much in so little time,” said Adjutant Chief Nagi Linegih El-Mamy, a soldier with the Mauritanian Army. “It was also good to see the professionalism of the U.S. Soldiers and see a well-trained Army that is really proud of the job they do.”

According to Murrell, based off feedback from after-action reviews completed by soldiers who participated in previous familiarization events, USARAF determined this familiarization event was essential to the success of

the upcoming Central Accord 13 and Flintlock 13 aerial exercises.

“The intent of this entire event is for partner nations to carry forward with the knowledge they learned and go back and train their Soldiers,” Murrell said.

“I have no doubt in my mind that what we’ve learned over these past few days can greatly help us make things easier for future missions, and I will definitely ensure I pass what I have learned to my fellow soldiers as we prepare for exercise Flintlock 13,” El-Mamy said.

U.S. and Cameroon Army parachute riggers participate in aerial delivery familiarization training at the 21st Theater Sustainment Command’s 5th Quartermasters Detachment rigger shed on Rhine Ordnance Barracks, Kaiserslautern, Germany, Nov. 5.

25 | The Georgia Guardsman

around The GeorGia Guard

GuArDSMAN wITh 224Th JOINT COMMuNICATIONS SuPPOrT SquADrON rECEIvES brONzE STAr

During a Saturday ceremony honoring returning Airmen from Afghanistan, Master Sgt. Dawn Sullivan earned the distinction for meritorious service in a combat zone. The presentation of her Bronze Star and other joint service commendations and achievement medals to members of the 224th were a part of a Yellow Ribbon Reintegration event held this weekend. The service members were a part of a Joint Communications Support Squadron that returned home in September from a six-month deployment. The group provided critical communications requirement to various mission in the U.S. Central Command in support of Operations Enduring Freedom.

CNN AND wwE hONOr GEOrGIA GuArDSMAN

Staff Sgt. Clay Ragsdale assigned to the Georgia Army National Guard’s Military Funeral Honors Detachment was acknowledged for his service to his country during a live broadcast on CNN hosted by Natasha Curry. In the middle of the interview, Sheamus, the current WWE World Heavyweight Champion, walked onto the studio floor and, to Ragsdale’s surprise, Sheamus was there to acknowledge him for all his service to the country.

November 2012 | 26

brACEwELL SPEAkS AT rOSALyNN CArTEr INSTITuTE FOr CArEGIvING

Colonel Brent Bracewell, the Georgia National Guard Director of the Joint Staff, talks with staff and guests of the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregiving in Americus about the military’s Wounded Warrior Program, how important caregivers are, and how important it is for those same caregivers to take time for themselves.

‘bIG FOur’ hOLD TALk ON STATE OF ThE GEOrGIA GuArD

Georgia National Guard senior leaders meet with Gov. Nathan Deal at the capitol to brief him on what is happening around the Georgia Department of Defense within the Georgia Army Guard, Air Guard and State Defense Force. The purpose of the meeting is to to advise the governor regularly on the status of the organization, where Georgia Army and Air Guardsmen are deployed, and what they are doing, and what resources are available – personnel and material-wise – to the Governor at any given time for any given request for support.

hLN DOCuMENTAry hIGhLIGhTS FAThEr’S JOurNEy TO hONOr FALLEN SON

Robert and his son Sgt. Mike Stokely of Troop E, 108th Cavalry are the subject of HLN’s documentary “108 Hours: A Father’s Journey to Iraq.” The 40-minute program follows Robert’s quest to visit the ground in Iraq on which his son Mike fought and died as a member of the 48th Infantry Brigade Combat Team during its 2004-2005 deployment to Iraq.

Public Affairs OfficeGeorgia Department of Defense1000 Halsey Ave. Bldg. 447Marietta, Ga. 30060

meet with Governor Deal to discuss state of the GuardGeorgia Guard Commanding Generals