MEDIA INVITE

Maine Marathon Tribute March

September 30th, Portland, Maine

Maine service members complete a 26.2 mile road march to pay tribute to fallen Maine combat veterans from Afghanistan and Iraq. 53 service members, including 8 Maine Army National Guard Soldiers from Maine, have died serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Contact: Captain Shanon W. Cotta
Public Affairs Officer Maine National Guard
(207) 626-4390

One hundred Maine military personnel will conduct a ruck-march during the Maine Marathon to pay tribute to those that have fallen since the beginning of the conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan. The event will occur on September 30, 2012, located at Baxter Boulevard in Portland.

All military participants, widows and family members of the fallen will assemble at 1:00 p.m., Payson Park to complete the final two miles as one group.

The service members will march the marathon route (26.2 miles) in full uniform while carrying a 30-pound military backpack to honor fallen service members. This march is a way of paying tribute to our fallen heroes in Maine. 53 service members which include 8 Maine Army National Guard Soldiers from Maine have died serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Details of the Maine Marathon Tribute March:

• Start Time: 6:00 a.m. at Baxter Boulevard
• Widows and family members will assemble at Payson Park, 1:00 p.m. to cross the finish line as one group
• Finish Time: 2:00 p.m. at Baxter Boulevard (All participants will complete the event as one group.)
• Route of March: The marathon route will begin and end at Back Cove in Portland; the course will proceed along Route 1 to Falmouth, then onto Route 88 to Yarmouth. Participants will return along the same route. This event is being organized by the Maine National Guard, www.mainemarathon.com.

For more information on the Maine Marathon Tribute March, please contact Staff Sergeant Timothy MacArthur, Maine Army National Guard at 207-215-6311, Tim.MacArthur@us.army.mil.

Medical Evacuation Partnership

25 September 2012 » By 1LT Kerri Brantley

A patient transfer from the 126th AVN in Kuwait. The US Navy patent was on a ship 270-miles from shore, a Marine Corp V-22 Osprey was dispatched to pick the patient up from the ship and recover him to Kuwait for further care. Waiting in Kuwait was a Blackhawk from Charlie Company 1-126 (Maine Army National Guard). Once the patent was moved to the Blackhawk, he was then transferred to the armed forces hospital. Photo by CW4 Jon Campbell.

C-126 Company Photo. Photo by CW4 Jon Campbell.

CAMP BUEHRING, KUWAIT - The focus of mission here in Kuwait is partnerships with the friends of the region while the 35th Combat Aviation Brigade is deployed here, however there is also a state-to-state partnership being fostered in the Medical Evacuation Company.

Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 126th Aviation Regiment (medevac) is compromised of Forward Support Medical Teams from both Maine and Oregon National Guards., these states were two of the last few wholly organic medevac units within a given state. The two units did not make the merge into one company until they met at Fort Hood, Texas, during pre-mobilization validation. From past deployments, the company commander, Maj. Mark Stevens, from Saco, Maine, has been told about all the issues of working side-by-side with different states.

"We all come from different states, different cultures, one of my biggest concern was our people wouldn't get along," said Stevens.

A significant concern of the commander was whether the unit would come together as a team or be two-separate entities; however that is not at all what has happened with this group.

"This has been an extremely easy transition, personalities, training, standards of operations, all lined up. They were just like us, Oregon fit right in. This was great that it happened to be so smooth, because this is a long-term partnership, this deployment is the foundation and it was a good start," said Stevens.

The only disagreement the members from both states have had is the correct pronunciation of Oregon.

"As commander, that has made my job easier, having good Soldiers from both states," said Stevens.

The commander was not the only one who shared the fear that the unit would not come together as a team, 1st Lt. Samantha Franklin of Eugene, Ore., is the assistant platoon leader and had similar apprehensions.

"I thought we would be excluded from missions, but that was falsity. There has never been and 'us and them' mentality," said Franklin. "Once we all got together at Fort Hood, leadership has worked hard to ensure there were no lines drawn."

The unit has faced some struggles together and endured a loss of one of their Soldiers, but in that time of despair the unit stood together. When one was struggling with the loss, another Soldier would be that stronghold.

"The ability for the unit to come together, even in the hard times just affirmed we are a cohesive team, we know we can lean on one another," said Franklin. "We also mix the aircrews together, so there is never all Maine or all Oregon personnel on a flight, this allows us to learn from one another all the time."

The company is the only medevac asset in the 35th CAB, with the primary mission to be the air ambulance for this region. However, when not conducting medical evacuations for troops here, they are training other units for what they have coined as "Medevac 101;" to date the company has educated almost 900 people in medevac training.

Medevac 101 teaches evacuation protocols, how to call in the Army's 9-line medevac request, how to prepare the landing zone, helicopter safety, and more. Flight medics are the primary instructors for the training.

"The training has multiple levels starting with the basic terminology to simulating a live transport while the helicopter is powered up with the blades running," said Sgt. Erica Yates. Back home, in Maine, Sgt. Yates is a nurse; she is new to aviation but likes teaching the combat lifesaver course and Medevac 101.

"The thing I appreciate most is for everyone to have basic safety and understanding how to operate around the helicopter. If they had to do this for real, they will know how to do it safely," said Yates.

Also playing a vital role in the training is another instructor, Spc. Matthew Maloney from Oregon. He is also new to aviation, but an experienced combat medic and previously deployed before to Iraq with an infantry unit. He was recently, hero of the week for his eagerness to progress as a flight medic, extremely active in training the forces, having a great capacity to learn and retain knowledge, which is vital to being a successful flight medic.

"Combining flight crews, for training and real-world evacuations has allowed individuals to come together as a team, we all came here for the same purpose," said Maloney. "Being able to help someone in a critical situation and train others to help is a very rewarding experience."

Capt. William Bradbury from Maine led a medevac group in the partnership with Jordan, in case a real-world situation happened, they would be there to help. The unit took the opportunity to conduct training flights while there as well.

"The terrain is different in Jordan and it was good to get that experience," said Bradbury. "We integrated flight crews, so that everyone felt like a part of the whole and no one feels like an outsider."

Long-lasting friendships have developed over the course of this deployment.

"We just clicked, our values were very similar, it's like we found our long-lost brothers and sisters," said Bradbury. "I will definitely stay in contact via Facebook and email. It would be really rewarding to do a Yellow Ribbon event together after the deployment."

Yellow Ribbon is a Guard and Reserve program that assists members who have served in combat and experienced the stress of war. Once they return to communities and jobs scattered across the nation and to friends and family who may not grasp the depth of their experience, Charlie Company would like the chance to be able to support one another once they are home.

"It would be great to see where they live and for us to get the chance to show them around our home and meet each other's families," said Bradbury. "It may or may not happen, but it would be an opportunity, which we would be forever grateful."

The unit continues to support partnerships in this region that promote stability and security, as they also foster this state-to-state medevac partnership.

"We have set the baseline for a long-term partnership, along with mission success and established lifelong friendships; it doesn't get much better than that," said Stevens.

The unit is due home early spring 2013.

Strength Through Soap

05 September 2012 » By Maine Army National Guard

Stock Photo of 11th CST Team Member Conducting Training in Augusta, Maine in April 2012

11th WMD-CST Strengthens Ties with the VA Maine Healthcare System

Augusta, Maine - 23 August 2012 - Great ideas are bubbling up at the Togus VA Medical Center. Soldiers from the 11th Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Team visited the Togus Medical Center to help train up the hospital's mass-casualty decontamination team in their implementation of a new decontamination building.

Lead by Togus VA Chief of Police and Emergency Manager Dennis Passmore, the decon team's mission is to be ready to support the local HAZMAT community in scrubbing crowds of people in the event of a hazardous materials release to the public. The new decon building, with a full complement of sprayers, brushes, boots and suits will be an integral part of that mission.

"This team is all volunteers and they're highly motivated," said SSG Kyle Bartman, CST Decontamination NCO. "When working from the ground up, that's exactly what you need. I can train people on concepts. I can train people on equipment, but motivation: they have to bring that to the fight on their own."

The CST Decon section evaluated the team's systems and procedures and made recommendations toward best work practices and HAZMAT safety.

"They have the right concepts," said SSG Bartman. "With a little guidance and a lot of hard work, this team will be successful."

Togus is hosting a full scale, multi-agency exercise on 25 September.

"We look forward to working with them at the exercise in September and beyond, in monitoring their progress as they develop their SOP's and grow as a team."