Guard recruits see state mission up close during training

By Spc. Antony S. Lee
Ngmo.pao@US.ARMY.MIL

MARYVILLE, Mo. - Four new Missouri National Guard Soldiers got a first-hand look at what they signed up for during their June drill.

The group traveled to a levee near Rock Port to see their fellow Citizen-Soldiers at work in response to flooding along the Missouri River.

Pfc. Sawyer Parkhurst, Pfc. Jessica Hoyt, Pfc. Adam Lane, and Pvt. Jordan Wilmes were picked to see the Guard in action on its state mission because all four have already completed basic training, said Master Sgt. Rod McKinney, who oversees the Guard's Recruit Sustainment Program in northwest Missouri.

"It's one thing to tell them about what the National Guard does, and it's another to see it in action," he said. "That was a great opportunity because they saw what the dual National Guard mission is about."

The National Guard is the only branch of the U.S. armed forces with both a federal and state mission. The federal mission includes sending Soldiers to support overseas contingency operations, while the state mission often involves mobilizing to combat natural disasters.

To get new recruits ready for those missions, the Missouri National Guard sends them to monthly training drills to hone their military skills.

Being able to see the state mission in action was a change for the group, said Parkhurst.

"We went to one of the levees," said Parkhurst. "We were basically observing what National Guard members do in that kind of situation, how it can impact everybody, and why the National Guard can help them out."

State emergency duties were a big factor in deciding to join the Missouri National Guard, said Hoyt. She said she appreciated the opportunity to see that mission close up and speak with the people involved.

With much of the rest of the state's attention turned towards natural disaster responses in the past four months, the Recruit Sustainment Program has continued its mission of preparing Soldiers for basic and advanced individual training, said Sgt. 1st Class Terry Turner, a cadre member for the program. When these Soldiers are trained, the skills they learned through the Recruit Sustainment Program and basic training will help them on their state mission.

"They call on us for our manpower and knowledge," Turner said. "Most of it is common sense, and we can apply some of the basic things we learned at training. Some combat skills are applicable in civilian life"

That's exactly what many of the new Soldiers intend to do.

"I expect us to respond to any state emergency duties, as far as floods, tornados and other natural disasters are concerned," said Spc. Jesse Meek, a new Citizen-Soldier who has not yet been to basic training. "It's one of the reasons I joined the National Guard."

For more information about the Missouri National Guard, please visit www.moguard.com and our social media sites:
www.facebook.com/Missouri.National.Guard; www.twitter.com/Missouri_NG; www.youtube.com/MoNationalGuard; www.myspace.com/missouri_ng; www.flickr.com/photos/missouriguard; www.blog.moguard.com
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