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Category: Idaho National Guard
Siblings serve in Idaho Guard as Citizen-Soldier, Airman
By Crystal Farris/Idaho Military Division Public Affairs
Maj. Christopher Lavelle and his younger sister, Master Sgt. Kerry Lavelle, are known on Gowen Field as “the Lavelles.” They have served on base as full-time technicians for several years and as traditional Guardsmen in the Idaho National Guard for nearly 20 years.
“It’s been fun serving in the military at the same time as my family,” said Christopher. “It seemed at one point that everyone on base knew who we were. They would see Kerry when she used to work in security forces at the front gate and they would see me for computer problems at the communications office.”
Joining the Guard was not something they planned to do together but was something they both ended up doing to pay for school. Coming from a family with four other siblings, Christopher said his dad could not afford to send them all to college. Serving in the military was a way to receive education assistance.
“Kerry and I weren’t confident in what we wanted to do in our lives or how long we would stay in the military,” he said. “We both ended up serving almost 20 years and having successful careers within the Guard.”
“I joined to pay for school, but I chose the Air Guard because my brother was in the Army Guard,” Kerry said. “I couldn’t join the same branch as him; I had to do something different.”
Christopher enlisted into the Idaho Army National Guard in June 2000 as a signal operations specialist after graduating from high school in Boise. A year later, Kerry graduated from the same high school and enlisted into the Idaho Air National Guard as a security forces Airman.
After returning from training at Fort Benning, Georgia, Christopher deployed to Bosnia with the 183rd Aviation Regiment in 2002. He later joined the 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team and deployed to Iraq in 2004. The next year, he reenlisted and started work as a full-time technician for the Idaho Army National Guard.
He served nine years as an enlisted Guardsman, became a sergeant, enrolled in officer candidate school and commissioned as a signal officer in 2008. The same year, Christopher earned bachelor’s degrees in criminal justice and political science from Boise State University.
“It took a long time for me to finish school between two deployments,” said Christopher. “I reenlisted because I wasn’t done with what I started and wanted to complete school. I later decided that if I was going to stay in, I wanted to commission.”
Kerry and her younger sister, Caitlin, who also served in the Idaho Army National Guard from 2004 to 2011, attended Christopher’s commissioning ceremony on Gowen Field.
“We were really proud of him,” Kerry said. “We both raced to the stage wanting to be the first to salute him, but Caitlin pulled off my hat to slow me down and ended up winning.”
In 2010, Christopher deployed again to Iraq as a platoon leader with the 148th Field Artillery Battalion. Since returning, he has served in various positions in the Guard, including company commander and signal officer for both a battalion and brigade staff.
He now works as a full-time technician and data processing manager for the United States Property and Fiscal Office and serves part time as a traditional Guardsman and the staff communications officer for Joint Force Headquarters-Idaho.
When Kerry went to Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, for basic military training in 2002, Christopher stayed in touch through letters.
“I remember my brother sent me postcards and pictures,” Kerry recalled. “He was in Salt Lake doing security for the Olympics and sent me a picture of him standing on his bunk with the bed all messed up. He joked, ‘How is basic training going? Good thing you are learning how to make a bed.'”
Kerry returned home in June 2002 and was activated, along with most of the 124th Security Forces Squadron, to provide increased security on Gowen Field after 9/11. She attended school and served intermittently on active duty orders as part of security forces on Gowen Field and Mountain Home Air Force Base until reenlisting in 2007.
“I decided last minute to stay in because the military was the one consistent thing in my life,” said Kerry. “I figured it would be a good decision, and it was.”
Kerry deployed to Saudi Arabia for six months with the 124th Security Forces Squadron in 2008. In 2010, she earned a social sciences degree in general studies from Boise State University and three years later left for Korea.
“I wanted to do something different just for a little while,” said Kerry. “I decided to travel to Korea and teach English for two years. It was fabulous. I also met my husband there, who laughs when I tell people he’s my favorite souvenir.”
Kerry returned home in 2015 and continued work in security forces until becoming the first sergeant for the wing’s logistics readiness squadron in 2018. That same year, she started a full-time job at the Department of Veterans Affairs. In 2019, Kerry reenlisted for the second time in a ceremony on Gowen Field. Christopher read her oath of reenlistment.
“It was really cool that Christopher was able to reenlist me,” said Kerry. “It makes me laugh thinking about how I messed up the oath because he had given me too many words at one time to repeat from memory.”
Although the two siblings are only 15 months apart, Kerry said Christopher took on fatherly responsibilities at a young age while their father was sick and after he died in 2008.
“My brother has taken on a different role in our family to all of us as kind of a caretaker,” said Kerry. “I’m sure at some point, my dad pulled him aside and told him to look after his family.”
While their father was sick with cancer, Christopher said they had many heart-to-hearts, mostly about taking care of the family.
“He had a big concern for his family and wanted the best for his kids,” said Christopher. “Out of five of us, three joined the military and two are still in. My other sisters also work in public service, so I think we have all done really well, and I know my dad would be proud of us.”
Kerry works in employee labor relations at the VA’s human resources office. In December, she became the first sergeant for the 124th Fighter Wing staff.
Airman serves as Guard flight surgeon, civilian physician
When he was in high school, Lt. Col. Timothy Ruth attended a science exhibition with his parents at a local museum in Minnesota. There was an educational video of an open-heart surgical procedure playing in one of the exhibits. The sight of the video nearly made him ill.
“My mom jokes about how I almost got sick watching it,” said Ruth. “My parents were a bit surprised when I later told them I wanted to go to medical school.”
Ruth was not surprised, however, since his interest in medicine had sparked earlier as a young kid assisting in surgeries and other pet care from his dad’s veterinary practice in their Pennsylvanian home.
He said the act of performing medical tasks was easier for him then just watching them. He also enjoyed the challenge of the field and helping others.
“It seemed to be the perfect career for me,” said Ruth. “Being a doctor meant I got to help people by using what I’ve learned, talents I have and gifts I’ve been given.”
After four years of college, four years of medical school and three years of residency, Ruth became a family practice physician.
Today he serves as a tradition Guardsman and flight surgeon for the 124th Fighter Wing’s 190th Fighter Squadron. He also works full-time as an urgent care provider and senior Federal Aviation Administration examiner for St. Luke’s hospital in Boise, Idaho.
Military first, medical school second
Joining the military was something Ruth wanted to do before he ever considered being a physician. Getting to do both was just the icing on the cake, he said.
After moving from Pennsylvania where he was born, to Minnesota where he graduating high school, Ruth joined the College of St. Thomas’ Air Force ROTC Program in St. Paul.
“I think I always had an interest in the military that started with talking to my grandfather who served as a Seabee in the Navy during World War II,” said Ruth. “It just so happened my college had ROTC, which interested me because it allowed me to try out the military before committing to it.”
Ruth graduated with a bachelor’s in chemistry and a minor in aerospace studies, while also commissioning into the active Air Force as a second lieutenant in 1993. He was then accepted to medical school at the Medical College of Wisconsin, where he received a full scholarship under the Health Profession Scholarship Program.
After medical school, Ruth continued onto his residency at the University of Wisconsin where he specialized in family medicine before starting his eight-year active duty commitment.
In 2000, he received his first duty assignment as a family physician at Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota. Three years later he transferred to Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho where he continued to serve in family medicine before attending flight surgeon school and switching to flight medicine in 2004.
The ‘flight physician’
Despite the name, flight surgeons do not perform surgery and do not have to be surgeons. Rather they tend to be physicians of family medicine, emergency medicine, internal medicine or something broader, Ruth said.
Their duties include conducting flight physicals, reviewing medical records, performing physical exams, inspecting work place safety hazards and collaborating with various occupational health programs to maintain the overall flight safety and safety of the organization’s pilots.
“Contrary to the name, you aren’t doing surgery on anyone much less in the air,” said Ruth. “You are a physician and your job is flight safety and taking care of the flyers. A better name for it would be flight physician.”
Since flight surgeons are rated officers and required to perform flying duties, they go through similar survival training as pilots, including water survival, egress and hypoxia chamber training. Going through these types of training, as well as flying with the pilots, give flight surgeons the ability to provide adequate care in their unique situation, Ruth said.
“The medicine that you practice and the things that happen to people at 1g on the ground are very different then what happens to the human body at 9gs,” he said. “When you fly with them, you understand all the physical and physiological demands placed on their bodies.”
After serving another five years in the Air Force, deploying to Ecuador in 2004 and to Afghanistan in 2007 with the 366th Fighter Wing, Ruth left the military completely. The day after he got out and was hanging up his flight suit, Ruth said he had a change of heart and decided to join the Idaho Air National Guard in 2008.
Not ready to hang up his flight suit
“I just wasn’t ready to walk away from that whole unique experience of flight medicine and military comradery,” said Ruth. “Military medicine offers some very unique opportunities that civilian medicine does not, like getting to participate in the whole flying world.”
As a flight surgeon with the Idaho Air National Guard, Ruth collaborates with the organization’s medical group to maintain the flight safety and medical readiness of approximately 50 pilots who fly the A-10 Thunderbolt.
The medical group consists of approximately 80 enlisted and commissioned Airmen who serve as physicians, advanced practice providers, nurses, ER doctors, surgeons and medical technicians. Some serve as ground surgical teams and critical air transport teams, while all are responsible for maintaining the medical readiness of the Idaho Air National Guard’s approximately 2,000 Airmen.
When not serving in the military, many of the Guardsmen work in similar civilian jobs within the medical field like he does, Ruth said. Being able to pursue a civilian career while also serving close to home makes the Guard more appealing then active duty, he added.
“It’s an amazingly diverse group of people,” said Ruth. “All of these Airmen on the civilian side work in everything from ER doctors and cardiothoracic surgeons to fire fighters and police officers. That’s the nice thing about the Guard, you get to do your civilian job but still get to be part of the military. That’s what appeals to me most.”
A civilian physician
On the civilian side, Ruth has worked as a family physician for St. Luke’s since 2008. He currently serves as the director of its urgent care facility in Boise, where he practices urgent care and treats patients with a variety of issues.
“I like the challenge,” said Ruth. “Every person that comes in has a unique challenge or circumstance and if you have the skills to help them it’s very gratifying.”
Within the same facility, Ruth also conducts Federal Aviation Administration examinations for private and commercial pilots who need to recertify their medical credentialing. Like the medical group, many of the Idaho Air National Guard’s pilots also work in similar civilian jobs and fly outside of the Guard.
Ruth said he enjoys getting the opportunity to serve his fellow Airmen and friends on the civilian side, as well as on the military side.
“Most of my friends are pilots and I enjoy having the ability to help them with their annual FAA examinations,” said Ruth. “Civilian FAA exams are similar to military flight exams so it’s a pretty natural bridge from flight surgeon to FAA examiner.”
Last year while deployed to Bagram Air Force Base in Afghanistan, Ruth had the opportunity to use his FAA credentialing to administer examinations to approximately 40 civilian pilots who were unable to return home due to the COVID-19 pandemic and needed to update their medical records.
“It was not something I had imagined doing on a deployment but I was able do that for those people and save them a big hassle in the end,” said Ruth. “It’s just another example of the unique opportunities medical providers get to experience through the Guard while serving others.”
Close to home; Guardsman finds purpose in serving tribes
Idaho Military Division Public Affairs/Crystal Farris
Born in the Dominican Republic, Pfc. Heily Groberg traveled far to be a U.S. citizen and then an Idahoan. Once here, however, she did not have to go far to help make a difference within her community.
An hour away from where she calls home, Groberg is helping the Idaho National Guard lower COVID-19 cases within a Native American community of more than 14,000 members.
“Just an hour away from where I live there was a community struggling,” said Groberg. “We were able to come in and help make their community safer and educate them on things they can do to make sure the cases stay low.”
In December, Groberg was one of several hundred Idaho Guardsmen who volunteered to mobilize to district health centers, local hospitals, health care facilities and medical centers across the state after Gov. Brad Little activated the Idaho National Guard as COVID-19 cases increased throughout the state.
Since then, she has been one of the approximately 50 other citizen-Soldiers and Airmen to partner with the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes and the Indian Health Service at the Fort Hall Indian Reservation in Pocatello. Together, they have helped track and lower the amount of positive COVID-19 cases from more than 850 to less than five.
“It’s been an amazing experience and I’ve loved interacting with the people, especially the youth,” said Groberg. “Kids don’t really understand how the pandemic impacts the community, just like I only had my families’ stories of when I was a child traveling to the U.S. on 9/11.”
Groberg’s father was born and raised in Utah, but met her mother while visiting the Dominican Republic on a mission for his church. He flew back and forth between the two countries before her mother’s visa was issued. The three of them boarded a plane together on Sept. 11, 2001, and were in flight when the attacks on the World Trade Center occurred in New York City.
“I was really young but my uncle who retired from the Army used to tell me a lot about how 9/11 impacted the U.S. and the military,” said Groberg. “Those stories have always left an imprint in the back of my mind about the importance of helping people and serving a higher purpose.”
After graduating high school in Tennessee, she moved to Idaho for college, having remembered her father’s beloved stories of his teenage adventures to the area. Although she later decided college was not for her, Groberg stayed in the area and enlisted into the Idaho Army National Guard as a supply specialist in 2019.
“I enlisted because I wanted to be part of something bigger than myself,” said Groberg. “There’s something fulfilling that comes from being part of the Guard, whose main goal is to help everyone be successful and safe.”
Although she is only 20 years old now, Groberg said her experiences with the Guard and tribes have already given her new purpose. She now wants to attend school and become a teacher to teach children on how they can also positively affect a community.
“I want to teach kids to know that their life has an impact on society and that everyone working together helps make a community what it is,” said Groberg.
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Idaho Civil Support Team trains with California, Oregon and Nevada’s CST units in the San Francisco Bay Area
By Master Sgt. Becky Vanshur – Idaho Military Division Public Affairs
SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA, Calif. – The Idaho National Guard’s 101st Civil Support Team was among several National Guard CSTs that participated in a large-scale exercise in Northern California Feb. 1-5.
The exercise, BAYEX 2021, tested the ability of Idaho, Oregon and Nevada CST teams to assist the California National Guard’s 95th CST while responding to training scenarios in the Bay Area involving weapons of mass destruction emergencies.
“This exercise gives us valuable training in our ability to respond to a chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear event,” said Lt. Col. Christina Taylor, commander of the 101st CST. “We have taken significant actions to ensure the 22 Soldiers and Airmen of the CST have the opportunity to continue to refine their skills in collective training exercises such as BAYEX.”
To initiate the exercise, biologically actionable results were simulated inside an abandoned military facility and a transit boat transporting people around the San Francisco Bay Area. The hazardous agent triggered phase one sampling, which resulted in federal agencies requesting support from the National Guard’s civil support teams. Civil support teams work closely with law enforcement and first responders, including the FBI, Department of Homeland Security and explosive ordnance disposal teams.
“It is important for every state’s governors and the nation to know that in the event of a small or large-scale emergency, the CST units are designed to respond and support local and federal civilian agencies,” said Taylor.
The Oregon National Guard’s 102nd and the Nevada National Guard’s 92nd CST also supported the California National Guard’s 95th CST training exercise.
“I truly enjoyed participating in this event,” said Staff Sgt. Troy McDonald, 101st CST survey team chief. “The exercise allowed our team to interact with other CST members and cross-train with each other, sharing best practices and procedures.”
Participating in large-scale exercises helps the 101st CST remain ready to respond to emergencies throughout Idaho and the nation. The unit supports civil authorities at domestic incident sites, which may involve areas affected by terrorism or natural disasters.
“It is vital to continue training for emergencies even as the global COVID-19 pandemic continues,” said Taylor. “It’s imperative that the Idaho National Guard civil support team remains trained and ready to respond at all times to our local community, as well as neighboring states, in the event of a large-scale real-world HAZMAT emergency.”
IDAHO NATIONAL GUARD SENDS PERSONNEL TO WASHINGTON, D.C. TO ASSIST 59TH PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATION
Idaho Military Division Public Affairs
(GOWEN FIELD) — The Idaho National Guard will send approximately 300 Soldiers and Airmen to Washington, D.C. in the coming days to assist district and federal agencies with the presidential inauguration. These Guardsmen will augment the Washington D.C. National Guard and serve in support of the U.S. Secret Service, the lead federal agency responsible for coordinating the event.
Personnel will begin departing from Gowen Field in Boise less than 72 hours after Gov. Brad Little approved the mission. The Nation’s Guard response could include an estimated 25,000 Guard members from all states and territories.
“The National Guard has participated in every presidential inauguration in our nation’s history,” said Maj. Gen. Michael Garshak, adjutant general of Idaho. “It is an honor to be a part of the tradition of ensuring the peaceful and orderly transition of national power; an act that separates us from many other countries across the world.”
Guardsmen will travel to Washington, D.C. via military airlift and contracted aircraft with standard government-issued equipment to perform a number of potential tasks to include security, communications, medical, logistics, and safety support to district and federal agencies. Nearly half of the National Guard task force will conduct security-related duties to include traffic control or by assisting visitors to proper assembly locations as well as entry and exit points.
The Idaho National Guard has planned for more than a month to send roughly a dozen personnel to the region in support of the inauguration. The increase in personnel is part of a new request to provide additional Guard support and represents roughly six percent of the Idaho National Guard force.
This deployment does not involve Soldiers and Airmen already working in their communities as part of the COVID-19 response effort. The Idaho National Guard will continue to maintain its capacity to provide emergency response in Idaho, whether it be a COVID surge, civil unrest, natural disaster or other emergency response function.
The Idaho National Guard has deployed out of state in support of national emergencies in the past. From Hurricane Katrina in 2005, wildland fire suppression in Oregon and Washington in 2015, to Puerto Rico for Hurricane Maria recovery support in 2017, the Idaho National Guard has provided hundreds of Soldiers and Airmen over the last decade in response to national emergencies.
More recently, last summer the Idaho National Guard sent Soldiers and helicopters to fight California wildfires and more than 400 Soldiers to Washington, D.C. to assist with civil unrest response. Additionally, the Idaho National Guard continues to provide state emergency relief here at home during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Soldier becomes Idaho’s first female 19D cavalry scout instructor
Master Sgt. Becky Vanshur, Idaho Military Division Public Affairs
Sgt. Sarah Field put on the Army uniform for her first time when she enlisted in June 2010, and 10 years later, she puts on that uniform with a little more pride as she is now the Idaho Army National Guard’s first certified female 19D cavalry scout instructor at the 1st Battalion, 204th Regional Training Institute (Armor) at Gowen Field.
Although she grew up in Boise, Idaho, Field started her military career in the Utah National Guard, while she attended college at Utah State University. During her time in the Utah National Guard she served one combat tour in Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom as a chaplain assistant. Following her initial military training and deployment, Field graduated from USU in 2014 with a bachelor’s degree in parks and recreation. After graduation, she transferred to the Idaho Army National Guard to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team, to come back to her hometown.
In 2020, she transitioned into the combat arms, wanting to be a cavalry scout, with the seed planted in her mind of becoming a certified instructor. While assigned to the HHC, 2nd Battalion, 116th Cavalry Regiment, Field became a more experienced scout team member as a truck commander and Bradley gunner. On Dec. 4, Field became certified to instruct cavalry scouts in the Military Occupational Specialty – Reclassification course (MOS-R) and on Dec. 22, she became certified to instruct the Bradley Commander and Gunner Course (BCGC). Her next goal is to be certified as an instructor for the Advanced Leadership Course (ALC).
“Becoming a certified instructor can be a long process,” said Field. “First you must go through the specific class as a student, then shadow the class, and follow up by teaching specific lesson plans back to the instructors. Once you complete those steps you become a provisional instructor and teach the classes while you are being shadowed and evaluated. I am now certified in two of the three courses in just nine months.”
Field attended the MOS-R as a cavalry scout student in February 2020. She was the only female in the combat arms class of 12 students but she knew she had to get through the challenging course to be considered for an instructor position.
“The MOS-R course is demanding and extremely physically and mentally challenging,” said Field. “It starts off with a 12-mile ruck march, heavy physical demands testing, day and night land navigation and works up to the Gunnery Skills Testing. I was definitely nervous and afraid of failing, but I knew if I didn’t try then I would never know what I was capable of accomplishing in my career.”
The GST consists of testing on ammunition and vehicle identification, small and medium weapons systems and other Bradley platform specific tasks. Despite having little previous combat arms experience, Field went on to graduate the 19D MOS-R in March and the 19D BCGC and the 19D ALC in August, completing all of the courses the 19D instructors teach. She is now certified as the instructor for the two courses and is currently starting the process to be certified as the instructor for the 19D ALC.
“I am grateful to have the opportunity be the first female instructor here at the Regional Training Institute. I feel it is important to have diversity in the learning environment,” said Field. “We all have different experiences and can relate to others in different ways. I have been able to use my gifts and talents to enhance the ways I teach our curriculum at the schoolhouse, helping students overcome their own challenges and learn and grow as Soldiers.”
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Idaho National Guard assists with COVID-19 pandemic response for a second time as 2020 comes to an end
On Nov. 13, Gov. Brad Little activated 100 members from the Idaho National Guard as cases of COVID-19 elevated throughout the state. For the past several weeks, the Idaho National Guard has partnered with agencies and organizations across Idaho as the battle against COVID-19 continues.
On Dec. 11, that number was increased to 250 under an authorization pursuant to 23 U.S.C. Section 502(f), which uses a mixture of state and federal resources to fund personnel. Citizen-Soldiers and Airmen are expected to remain on duty through March 2021.
“As medical providers across the state continue to call on the Guard for assistance, this additional authorization provides the Guard with an increased capability to respond to simultaneous short-notice requests,” Little said. “With members of the Guard performing these missions, it frees up health care workers to focus on providing critical patient care.”
The activation was the second time Little has called on the Idaho National Guard for additional assistance. In April, Little activated nearly 50 citizen-Soldiers and Airmen for approximately a month to assist at food banks throughout the state as the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic hit Idaho.
Guardsmen are currently stationed at several central district health centers, local hospitals, health care facilities and medical centers, COVID-19 testing stations, foodbanks and the Lighthouse Rescue Mission, while also partnering with Good Samaritan staff and the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes.
“When the Idaho National Guard is called upon, it’s your friends, family and neighbors coming together to support our communities,” said Maj. Gen. Michael Garshak, adjutant general of Idaho. “We are all citizens of Idaho, working toward the same goal.”
Idaho National Guard leadership recently visited several sites across the state to see how Idaho citizen-Soldiers and Airmen are making an impact throughout the community. Primary Health’s CEO, David Peterman, told the Guard’s leadership on that visit that since the Idaho National Guard began assisting, Primary Health has completed roughly 15,000 extra COVID-19 tests.
Guardsmen are conducting COVID-19 testing and screening, traffic control, lab work, data entry and facility decontamination and sanitization. Additionally, personnel are helping prepare baskets full of food and other necessities to be delivered to those in need.
“The Idaho National Guard is proud to partner with the incredible staff and leadership of Idaho’s health districts and our tribal leadership to build capacity across multiple fronts,” said Brig. Gen. Russ Johnson, director of the joint staff. “From COVID testing and screening, to essential distribution of food and daily staples, together we are making a positive impact in the lives of Idaho’s Citizens.”
U.S. flag flown over Afghanistan dedicated to Shoshone-Bannock Tribes
Idaho Military Division Public Affairs
Master Sgt. Becky Vanshur
A U.S. flag, in honor of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes, was presented on Nov. 2 to the tribe council. This special flag was flown through the skies over Afghanistan one night during the Idaho Air National Guard’s recent Southwest Asia deployment.
The “Warrior Spirit,” an A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft dedicated to the tribes several years ago by the IDANG, participated in several night missions throughout the deployment.
Capt. Mike Shufeldt, 124th Fighter Wing pilot, remembers the night of June 18, 2020 vividly. He was flying the Warrior Spirit and situated next to him, near his lap, was the special U.S. flag honoring the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes.
He recalls taking off as the sun was setting, climbing above the mountain peaks off to his west. He saw a flash of light on the ground near a known allied checkpoint location. He immediately realized the checkpoint was under attack by what appeared to be grenades and gunfire.
He spent the next three hours defending the checkpoint from the air in the Warrior Spirit against the enemy ground forces. Although he received fire several times throughout the altercation, the enemy was unsuccessful in hitting the aircraft.
“The Warrior Spirit kept me safe and granted me the ability to protect the friendlies,” said Shufeldt. “Be it luck or fate, the Warrior Spirit and I were at the right place at the right time that night to save lives and affect the fight.”
While presenting the flag, Shufeldt told the Shoshone-Bannock Council about that special night in the Warrior Spirit.
“On behalf of myself and the Idaho National Guard, please accept this flag that I flew on that mission that night, in recognition of the Warrior Spirit and the mission it continues to help us accomplish,” said Shufeldt.
During the 124th Fighter Wing’s deployment to Southwest Asia, several U.S. flags were flown in honor of each tribe and will also be dedicated and presented.
Operation Uplift and Serve
Businessmen Troy McClain and Bedros Keuilian support Idaho’s Youth ChalleNGe Academy with a big surprise
By Master Sgt. Becky Vanshur
PIERCE, Idaho – One of Idaho’s well-known reality TV show stars and businessman Troy McClain, joined forces with international businessman Bedros Keuilian who is widely known for his influential fitness brands as well as one of the largest health franchise entrepreneurs in the world today. Now, the Idaho National Guard knows him for his act of kindness on Nov. 6 by donating thousands of dollars’ worth of gym equipment to the Idaho Youth ChalleNGe Academy.
McClain focuses on making positive changes in the lives of children around the globe. Today, he honed in locally to show his support to the Idaho Youth ChalleNGe Academy. Inspired by the Adjutant General of Idaho Maj. Gen. Michael Garshak’s passion for giving back to the IDYCA, McClain joined the cause. The IDYCA is a Department of Defense and IDNG collaborative program designed to give second chances to Idaho’s youth who are 16 to 18 years old, and who have either dropped out of high school or are at risk of doing so.
A month earlier, the IDNG invited McClain to visit the IDYCA. Garshak spoke passionately about his commitment to the Idaho program and his commitment to the cadets. During the visit, McClain asked both the students and faculty the question, “If you could have one thing to help support this program, what would that be?” He then repeated the same question to leadership of the IDNG.
McClain said he was awed by each response. In each answer they all simply asked to make the program better for the cadets who follow their footsteps. The cadets collectively identified the need for better fitness equipment; the faculty and staff requested more inspirational and motivational leaders who could engage with the cadets; and the IDNG leadership wanted more exposure for the IDYCA so the public can learn more about this program.
“Armed with my answers and inspired by the thoughtfulness for others I could only identify one single person who would be able to achieve all these requests in one,” said McClain. “I immediately called my good friend and businessman Bedros Keuilian. In such a time of crisis, I knew getting gym equipment; access to motivational speakers; and covering delivery costs would to be limited. I also knew the best way to get ahead is to give back and I absolutely knew Keuilian was the man to call. When I call on friends for help, I vow to ensure it wont be for myself and it will be for a cause that aligns with their values and propose in life.”
Keuilian was an immediate yes for donating the gym equipment and giving his time to visit the academy, and to meet and inspire the cadets. The equipment donated consists of new balance balls, battle ropes, box jumps, jump ropes, kettlebells, medicine balls, pull-up stations and weight-lifting sandbags. To top it all off, McClain and Keuilian created a team of motivated representatives and flew them to Pierce to spend the day with the cadets. Former Navy SEAL, CIA contractor and TV actor Ray “Cash” Care, and U.S. Marine Steve Eckert, were brought along to visit the cadets and instruct a special workout session designed to prove to the cadets that they can endure and overcome difficult challenges. By the end of the workout, each cadet successfully completed the rigorous tasks provided by Care and Eckert.
The IDYCA is administered by the Department of Defense and is a cooperative program between the Idaho Military Division and the National Guard’s Youth ChalleNGe Program. The academy provides students the potential to earn up to a year’s worth of credits, to graduate from the program with a high school diploma or GED, or return to their respective high schools to graduate with their class.
For motivation, the cadets participated in an extremely challenging obstacle course to build resiliency and Keuilian delivered an inspirational speech about what he endured in his life to get to where he is today.
“I didn’t even make it through high school. What makes me think I could make it through college?” said Keuilian. “How could I own a fitness franchise and a software company? Because I have heart. I am driven and because I know my purpose.”
More than 30 U.S. states currently have a similar cooperative program. Idaho’s program has helped reshape the lives of more than 1,200 Idaho teens since welcoming its first class in January 2014. Each class is a 22-week program and is offered twice a year.
“The Idaho Youth ChalleNGe Academy’s mission to reclaim the lives of Idaho’s at-risk youth is one of my top priorities,” said Garshak. “The Idaho National Guard is so grateful that these amazing people were willing to donate their time and talent today to help our cadets realize their full potential.”
Idaho Senior Enlisted Leader does more than horse around
Chief Master Sgt. Harold Bongiovi sees a lot of similarities between working with horses and working with the Soldiers and Airmen he oversees as the Idaho National Guard’s senior enlisted leader.
Bongiovi spends his days around horses. He grew up around them. He trains a few, but most of his time is spent working as a farrier, someone who specializes in horseshoeing. Because every horse’s hoof is different, each shoe must be pre-made or shaped to that specific horse, similar to the personalities of each Soldier and Airman.
“Horsemanship skills are similar to leadership skills,” he said. “The language is different, but it’s the same theory. Horses look for leadership capabilities from the people they are around just like people do. They just speak a different language. They respond to good quality leadership and they resent hard-handed leadership, just like people.”
Bongiovi spends at least one day a week and one weekend a month working alongside Maj. Gen. Michael Garshak, adjutant general of Idaho and the commander of the Idaho National Guard. Bongiovi credits the balance he finds between his military and civilian careers with prolonging both.
“Over the years, I’ve liked being able to do something different,” he said. “The opportunities I’ve had in the military sure beat shoeing horses six days a week, 52 weeks a year.”
Bongiovi estimates that the weekly break has added another four or five years to his horseshoeing career, which began on his grandfather’s farm. Bongiovi grew up there and his grandfather always had horses.
“I had the bug when I was a kid and there’s no cure,” he said.
When Bongiovi was 16, he needed someone to shoe one of his horses but couldn’t find anyone to do it so he decided to figure it out himself. His neighbors asked him to shoe their horses. Then their neighbors told their neighbors they knew someone who could shoe horses. By 17, Bongiovi realized he could make money shoeing horses.
Bongiovi joined the United States Air Force in 1985 to go to college. However, he realized he wasn’t able to attend classes due to his travel schedule as a KC-135 crew chief. After four years, he got out of the Air Force and moved back to Idaho without intending to continue his military career.
In 1989, he joined the Idaho Air National Guard’s 124th Fighter Wing.
“I started thinking, ‘I have all this experience, maybe I shouldn’t let it go to waste.’”
He was hired into a full-time position shortly after but in 1996, his part-time horseshoeing business started to take off so he decided to become a part-time Guardsman.
Bongiovi said he wouldn’t have gotten to travel as much as he has without the National Guard experience. In addition, he said being a traditional Guardsman keeps him fresh because he’s able to take a break from a problem and approach it again with a fresh set of eyes.
Bongiovi was appointed as the state enlisted leader in 2017 and is the second Airman to hold the position. As the state’s senior enlisted member, he communicates directly to the state’s commanding general on behalf of the Idaho National Guard’s enlisted members.
He also helps interpret policy from the National Guard Bureau for implementation across the Idaho National Guard, while also keeping the adjutant general apprised of current issues affecting enlisted personnel.