Volume 3, Number 4 1st Quarter Fiscal Year 2016 Year in Review Building 16 open for 4 business Brigade reigns fire in YS By Capt. Tom Blackburn commander) philosophy for training missions, and strengthen those pro- Deputy Public Affairs Officer the brigade during each training year cedures,” Rayes said. “We met our Wyoming Military Department is executing events one up and one objective, but have room to improve. Heroes Among Us awarded down, meaning we support a higher Our potential is high.” Fire mission! Fire mission!” headquarters and a battalion level Some of the soldiers were able to headquarters during the year,” said observe the importance of the func- 7 bellowed in the room. Maj. Nicholas Rayes, brigade ex- tionality between the various organi- ecutive officer, and officer-in-charge zational levels during a war-fighting CONTACT INFORMATION A scene of organized chaos environment. Public Affairs Office “unfolds, as artillery fire control op- “One of the things is we got to work 307-772-5253 erators begin the necessary work to all our war-fighting functions togeth- Deployment allows for Military Records clear airspace, send commands to er,” said Rayes. “Everyone in each unique visit 307-772-5239 battalion level units and ensure no section, even though we weren’t at Wyoming Veterans Commission friendly forces are in the area of the our full staffing, were able to work as 10 307-777-8152 firing location. Joint Operations Center a team and get the job done.” 307-772-5112 This is all done in rapid succes- As an artillery headquarters, the Camp Guernsey Joint Training Center sion, as lives are at stake on the brigade also got to fine tune the co- 307-836-7810 ground, and the artillery is needed to ordination involved in shooting long STARBASE turns 20 Human Resources Office clear the way for maneuver elements range weapon systems, such as the 307-772-5134 in their attack against enemy forces. 2nd Battalion, 300th Field Artillery’s Wyo. Army Guard retirement services In this case however, the enemy during Yama Sakura. “Doing Yama High Mobility Artillery Rocket System. 16 307-772-5422 forces are red squares on a map. Sakura, where we worked with I The fires of the brigade were Wyo. Air Guard retirement services The friendly forces blue, with allied Corps, meets that intent.” being executed so well, that mid- 307-772-6321 elements in green. There are no The exercise did not involve the way through the exercise, while red real soldiers on the ground. It’s all a whole brigade headquarters, but a squares were moving away from the On the Cover simulation. small element that could operate the blue ones on the map, an operations Sgt. Kort Riker, a crew chief with C Company, This entire scene unfolds in a tacti- essential elements of the TOC and officer brought great news to the Wyoming’s Adjutant General 153rd Air Wing Public Affairs: 5th Battalion, 159th cal operations center at Joint Base perform the primary mission, which TOC. Since the simulation didn’t al- Maj. Gen. Luke Reiner Capt. Cody Hawkins Aviation Regiment, Lewis McCord, outside of Tacoma, was to unleash accurate artillery fire low for forward observers to see the 2nd Lt. Eve Neisen spends a few hours with Director of the Joint Staff Master Sgt. Charles Delano his daughter, Kaylee, at Washington, far away from any in support of maneuver elements. damage, it was difficult to confirm Brig. Gen. Gregory Porter Master Sgt. Leisa Grant a send-off ceremony for battlefield or frontline. “This was an opportunity for us battle damage. But according to the Tech. Sgt. John Galvin his Afghanistan-bound Recently, members of the Wyoming State Public Affairs Officer Staff Sgt. David Meade unit at the Army Aviation to operate as a Force Field Artillery simulation operators, the 115th was Ms. Deidre Forster Senior Airman Cherron Vaden Army National Guard’s 115th Field Deputy Public Affairs Officer Senior Airman Nichole Grady Support Facility, in Chey- Headquarters to support a larger destroying a lot of enemy equipment. Capt. Tom Blackburn enne, in October. Artillery Brigade, with support from element, like corps,” Rayes said. “We “Our guys are incredible. Every- State Public Affairs Office staff 197th Public Affairs Detachment: Capt. Megan Hoffmann Capt. Christian Venhuizen Cowboy Guard, a Wyoming National Guard news subordinate battalion personnel, par- were able to work through many of thing we do as a soldier, even in Sgt. 1st Class James McGuire Sgt. 1st Class Frank Marquez publication, is produced quarterly by the Wyoming ticipated in the Yama Sakura training our processes that are necessary to our MOS-series jobs, is doing what Social Media Manager Staff Sgt. Meredith Vincent National Guard Public Affairs Office, Cheyenne, Wyo., Mr. Brett Kahler Sgt. Justin Gosling in accordance with AR 360-1 and AFI 35-101. exercise at JBLM. meet that mission.” we’re trained to do,” said Sgt. Major Sgt. Cody Hess Contents of Cowboy Guard are not necessarily the As part of a multi-state and unit For a week, the brigade worked 12- Michael Strasser, brigade operations Wyo. Air National Guard PA Sgt. Christopher Kirk official view of, or endorsed by, the U.S. Government, Master Sgt. Rob Trubia Sgt. Ashley Smith Cowboy Guard the Department of Defense, Department of the Air task organization, the Cowboy hour shifts and constantly received sergeant major. “But we are do- Spc. Dustin Robertson Public Affairs Office Force, Department of the Army, National Guard Thunder brigade provided simulated Wyo. Army National Guard PA 5410 Bishop Blvd. Bureau or the State of Wyoming. Submissions are fire missions from division level that ing them to a high standard. Really Maj. Rebecca Walsh Cheyenne, WY 82009 accepted via email at ng.wy.wyarng.pao-distribution@ artillery fire for the 34th Infantry Divi- went through the brigade to battal- pleased to be in the mix and do that Sgt. Amanda Preddice 307-772-5253 mail.mil. All submissions will be edited. sion, out of Minnesota. ions. Sitting in the same room were job well.” For the exercise the division soldiers who pretended to be bat- By the end of the exercise the trained the joint capabilities of the talion commanders and executed 115th was satisfied with the result. Visit the Wyoming Military Department online U.S. Army’s I Corps and Japan’s firing missions into the simulation at “Honestly, the event was very suc- military. While other forces were in their stations. It was an intricate, but cessful,” Strasser said. “Our soldiers wyomilitary.wyo.gov instagram.com/wyoguard flickr.com/photos/wyoguard Japan, all but two of Wyoming’s sol- useful, portrayal of the fire mission are the ones that made it success- diers operated out of Washington. facebook.com/wyoguard twitter.com/wyoguard procedures used in real life. ful.” youtube.com/wyoguard “Col. (Gregory) Phipps’ (the brigade “We were able to execute our fire 2 3 hat can you buy with $30.5 million? A new headquarters building, for one. The Wyoming Air National Guard’s 153rd Airlift Wing has moved roughly 300 of its personnel into its refurbished headquarters, Wknown on the base as “Building 16” after they spent the last 3 1/2 years spread around the property in bland double-wide trailers. Story continues on page 6 4 5 continued from page 4 “Bland” is not a word to describe Heroes awarded the new building. Wyoming touches are peppered throughout. Wood Three Wyoming National Guard members were rec- planking from beetle-killed trees, ognized as 2015 Heroes Among Us. The annual award wildlife mounts, photos and other recognizes selfless service – outside of a military status historical touches add personality. – performed by our soldiers, airmen and civilian employ- “This really is a first-rate facility, ees. so I think the wing is going to enjoy Two airmen and one soldier were recognized for their it and I think we’ll be more efficient quick thinking in assisting other Wyoming residents in and effective than we have been in times of emergency. The awards are traditionally pre- the past,” said Col. Brad Swanson, sented at the October Governor’s Reception. wing commander, who has made the Capt. Paul Kanish, a traditional Wyoming Army Na- move from the corner office in the tional Guard officer serving in Joint Forces Headquarters, command section’s double-wide to assisted victims of a rollover on Wyoming’s snowy and the corner office on the second floor ice-covered roads last winter. According to his nomina- of the 144,000 square-foot building. tor, retired Command Sgt. Maj. Gayle Baugh, “the bitter The building’s ceremonial ribbon cold temperatures that morning combined with the wind cutting was held Nov. 9. Construc- funneling through the openings in the cab were quickly tion began in March 2012 on what causing the injured occupants to go into a state of is, currently, the second largest Sus- shock.” tainment, Restoration and Modern- Kanish, along with his brother, rendered first aid and ization project in Air National Guard transferred the injured victims to their vehicle and to history. remain warm until medical professionals arrived. Five-R Construction served as the In July, Staff Sgt. Chance Walkama, a member of the general contractor for the project. Wyoming Air National Guard’s 153rd Security Forces Roughly 85 percent of the materials Squadron, went to Outback Steakhouse, in Cheyenne, used are recycled products. for a quiet dinner with his wife. When he and his wife Lt. Col. Brett Trippel, 153rd Civil arrived, a woman was holding her unbreathing baby. He Engineer Squadron commander, said quickly questioned the mother and discovered the baby the remodel, as massive in scope as quit breathing while they were eating.