With 31 years of service, Smith knows a thing or two about the Guard’s disaster response capabilities. From deadly heat waves, floods and hurricanes – including Hurricane Katrina – Smith’s service with the 35th Infantry Division has mobilized him on state active duty many times to support his governor and governors of other states.“The division was actually the National Guard’s C2 [command and control] part of Hurricane Katrina [for Louisiana],â€Â Smith said. “We had a work cell at Bell Chasse [Naval Air Station].â€Â Smith and others from the 35th division deployed here last week to participate in an exercise that tests the DART, which can be requested by state governors who need resources to assist civilian responders during a major disaster. The 35th division’s DART-West is one of only two DARTs that encompass the Guard’s major disaster coordination for the nation. The Pennsylvania Guard’s 28th Infantry Division runs DART-East. DARTs provide disaster response assistance at a state governor’s request when the state’s internal assets are exhausted or unavailable, Smith explained. DARTs also can provide assets, he added, through hurricane matrices and emergency management assistance compact agreements. “We find those assets,â€Â he said, explaining that the DART establishes force packages that mobilize and deploy to a disaster area to meet the identified capability gaps. Those packages, Smith said, can provide Army and Air Guard capabilities, including command and control, special response teams, aviation, military police, engineer, transportation, medical, chemical and communications, among others. Army officials pointed out why infantry divisions are qualified to run DART in the service’s 2010 Posture Statement: “The DART concept utilizes the unique capabilities of a division headquarters for planning and coordinating the employment of units.â€Â Having deployed twice with the 35th division’s headquarters, Smith possesses the requisite qualities and experience needed for a DART. He deployed to Multinational Division North in Bosnia as an operations NCO for the communications office there. He also deployed to Camp Bondsteel, the main Army base in Kosovo, and served as a first sergeant for military intelligence. DART members also use their skills and experiences from their civilian occupations, said Smith, who employs his skill as a commercial telecommunications specialist in international circuits and lines. In his DART role, Smith gets communications systems up and working when the team’s coordination cell is activated. In the exercise, the DART simulated its activation for a series of domestic disaster scenarios, including a wildfire, flood, hurricane, earthquake and terrorism. If a DART is ever activated to establish real-world force packages, Smith said, then “something very bad has happenedâ€Â to the nation. “We hope we never have to use the DART,â€Â he said. “I hope my job is always easy … I never want to go to a big disaster.â€ÂJuly 20, 2010: By Air Force Master Sgt. Mike R. Smith- National Guard Bureau

Army Sgt. 1st Class Dempsey Walker is a supply support activity platoon sergeant with Company A, Task Force Workhorse, 3rd Combat Aviation Brigade, Task Force Falcon. He has spent 24 years in the Army, and is serving on his fourth deployment.His brother, Air Force Master Sgt. Nicholas Walker, is a computer systems manager with Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force Afghanistan. He has spent 17 years in the Air Force and is serving on his third deployment.“This is the first time we have been deployed to the same base,â€Â Dempsey said. “We were stationed in Korea at the same time and deployed to Iraq at the same time, but to different bases.â€Â Nicholas said his brother had been here for six months when he arrived. “It makes life here a lot easier,â€Â he said, “having a family member so close who can relate to what you are doing.â€Â Dempsey said he was anxious to join the military and chose the Army because it was able to let him join three months earlier than the other services. Nicholas, however, was not as anxious, and said he made his decision based on the experiences of his brothers. “We have an older brother that used to be in the Air Force,â€Â Nicholas explained. “After I talked to both my brothers, I decided the Air Force was right for me.â€Â Dempsey said he and Nicholas get together at least once a week to talk, go to church or just hang out. They usually eat at least one meal together whenever their schedules allow, he added. “It is nice to have a family member here to talk to -- someone who is in the same location and situation and who can understand and relate to the types of problems that can pop up from time to time,â€Â Dempsey said. “In times like these, it is good to have your brother by your side.â€Â July 16, 2010: By Army Sgt. Robert Healy- Task Force Falcon

At the Center for the Intrepid, Larson worked with severely wounded warriors, and from them she drew a singular inspiration.“They were still proud to be in the Army, and they were working really hard to rehabilitate themselves and to do the best they had with what they had,â€Â said Larson, now a physician assistant and a first lieutenant with the 82nd Airborne Division’s 1st Advise and Assist Brigade, deployed in Iraq since August 2009.“‘This is what life dealt me; this is what I am working with, and now it’s time for me to move on. There is no feeling sorry for yourself here.’ That was the attitude that all the soldiers had,â€Â Larson said. “It was really inspiring.â€Â At age 28, with years invested in a career designing airports for domestic and international markets, Larson, a Chicago native, decided she wanted more than a big paycheck and a corner office. “I asked myself, if I could start over and do anything at all, what would I do? And I realized that I’ve always wanted to be in medicine and never had the guts to try it,â€Â she said. Of all the career options, medicine was the one thing that resonated and stuck, Larson said. However, the Army was never part of the plan until she “met someone who knew someoneâ€Â during PA school clinical rotations. The Army intrigued her, but Larson wanted to be sure she could handle being around the worst of combat injuries before committing. She recalled being deeply impressed by the bravery and stoicism of the severely wounded soldiers, including amputees, she’d met. “That is when I made my decision to join the Army,â€Â Larson said. “If these guys could give up multiple limbs for their country, the least I could do was to give three years of my life.â€Â Not too long after that, the newly-minted PA found herself caring for the soldiers of an airborne logistics unit, the 307th Brigade Support Battalion, deployed in Iraq’s largest and historically most volatile province, al Anbar. “I found that in the military, I was catering to a completely different population than I thought I would be,â€Â said Larson, who initially wanted to practice international medicine in areas with little access to medical care, such as Africa’s Swaziland. “My guys – the guys I treat – are convoy security, and that’s not a very ‘sexy’ job and not often glorified. I really enjoy taking care of them,â€Â she said. “Even though it’s not humanitarian aid in Africa, I feel like it’s an incredibly worthy cause. I am very satisfied with it.â€Â As it turns out, through the advise-and-assist mission of professionalizing Iraqi security forces in Anbar, Larson also gets to care for people who might otherwise never receive medical attention. The U.S. paratroopers, she said, have sponsored temporary medical clinics for the poorer, more rural towns and villages up and down the western Euphrates River Valley in partnership with the Iraqi army, police and local doctors. Often, hundreds of ailing Iraqis, she noted, receive medical treatment at the clinics each day. Larson said some of her soldier-comrades are puzzled as to why she left her corner office and high-paying job for the Army. “I don’t miss my former lifestyle at all,â€Â she emphasized. “I was miserable, and I’m not miserable now.â€Â She tells her younger medics that knowing what you don’t want to do is just as important as knowing what you want to do. Don’t do things just for the money and don’t choose things because they are easy, she counsels them. When Larson joined the Army, she recalled, her mother was shocked, and cried. “My mom was like, ‘What are you doing? You are going to deploy. You could get hurt,’â€Â Larson said. “But now my mother is the most ridiculously proud woman on the planet.â€Â The daily challenge of medicine, Larson said, is what keeps her enthused in her job. And, she added, unlike some other occupations, there always is more to learn in medicine. “It’s worth it to me,â€Â Larson said. “It’s an honor serving these guys who are fighting for us and out there doing the grunge work.â€Â July 15, 2010: By Army Sgt. Michael MacLeod- 1st Brigade, 82d Airborne Division Public Affairs Office

 

The Korean War’s cease-fire was near, and President Dwight D. Eisenhower had just started his first term in office.Many things have changed since then, but one thing didn’t change: the young man’s commitment to serve his country. Army Chief Warrant Officer 4 Nelson "Gene" Blakey of Moweaqua, Ill., retired June 1 after 56 years in the Illinois National Guard. "I don't think we will ever find anyone to replace him," said Army Sgt. Maj. Donnie R. Parker of Lincoln, Ill. "I think we can find someone who can do the job -- we have personnel in the office who are covering down on the things that he was responsible for and are getting things done -- but as far as the person, I do not think you will ever find anyone who will compare with the person that Mr. Blakey is." Blakey started his military career working in a U.S. Property and Fiscal Office warehouse here. He progressed through the ranks to sergeant major, and then from chief warrant officer 2 to chief warrant officer 4. Blakey hung up his boots and retired as a traditional Illinois National Guardsman in 1994, but he continued to work for the military as a state employee for 16 more years. Although he has experienced many things throughout his career, Blakey said, his last position was his most enjoyable. "My most rewarding position was the last job I had working in the personnel department, because I was able to help enlisted people," he said. "If they had a problem and could not get it solved within their unit, I would try to help get it solved. I worked there from 1975 until I retired." Others attest to Blakey's passion and ability to help soldiers solve problems. "Mr. Blakey, in the time that I worked with him, was a person that was very interested and concerned with taking care of soldiers," Parker said. "He would go out of his way to do whatever needed to be done to see that the soldiers were being taken care of in a way they should be. He was a very humble, outgoing person who was willing to assist in any way possible, whether it was part of his job description or not." While Blakey's career nearly spanned the length of three 20-year military careers, he said he continued to serve in the Illinois National Guard because of his friends and family. His wife, Bonnie Blakey, also is retired from the Illinois National Guard."My family has been supportive of me," Blakey said. "My wife retired in 1999, and her support and involvement has been very important. If your family knows what you are doing, they stay with you and help you through everything." Most people working at Camp Lincoln here knew Blakey, and many others throughout the state connected with him during their careers as well. "He definitely had the ability to mix his professional career with friendships," said Ray Perry of Springfield, personnel support officer for the Illinois National Guard and a retired colonel with the Illinois Army National Guard. "I always enjoyed making my morning rounds and getting the latest news or thought for the day from him,â€Â Perry said. “He always had the ability to put a smile on your face." Although Blakey has retired, he does not look to take it easy. Instead, he is focusing his attention on things that need to be improved around his house. "I will have horses to take care of, along with house and barn work to do," he said. "I will not slow down. I will keep going as long as I can." July 14, 2010: By Army Sgt. Jesse Houk- 139th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment