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HARLINGEN, Texas – Senior Enlisted Advisor Tony L. Whitehead, the senior enlisted advisor for the chief, Nationwide Guard Bureau, visited Texas Nationwide Guardsmen on the Texas-Mexico border over the Thanksgiving vacation.
Whitehead serves because the chief’s principal navy adviser on all enlisted issues affecting coaching, utilization, the well being of the power, and enlisted skilled growth. As the best enlisted degree of Nationwide Guard management, he offers course for the enlisted power and represents their pursuits.
“The aim of the go to was to verify on our Troopers and Airmen engaged on Operation Lone Star,” Whitehead stated. “They’re Guardsmen, and I wished to make it possible for we had a possibility to talk to them about their ideas and concepts in regards to the mission, how they have been doing, how they felt about how the mission was going and any concepts that I wanted to take again to the chief of the Nationwide Guard Bureau.”
Operation Lone Star is a state-led mission to reply to elevated unlawful immigration on the Texas-Mexico border. In Might 2021, Texas issued a catastrophe declaration masking 48 counties, primarily alongside or close to the border. Roughly 6,000 service members are presently deployed to assist Operation Lone Star.
Throughout his go to Nov. 22-24, SEA Whitehead met with completely different items and parts to get a full image of the varied mission units of the state active-duty members. That included using on a Texas State Guard heart console boat utilized by Job Drive East, referred to as the ‘river unit,’ for the border mission.
“Job Drive East is chargeable for 4 zones within the McAllen sector of the border. Our unit is particularly chargeable for the river,” stated Texas Military Nationwide Guard Capt. Mike Jones, commander of the TF East group. “As we speak, we have been showcasing among the highlights of each the Mexico and U.S. facet, similar to landmarks, key areas the cartel makes use of and Border Patrol use, you recognize, in the entire cat and mouse sport of border safety.”
Troopers assigned to the river unit obtained recognition cash from Whitehead for his or her work on the border and talked about their experiences on the mission with him.
“The Southwest border mission is a novel mission to the USA,” Whitehead stated. “For our Troopers and Airmen doing the mission, this has been talked about loads, and I believe generally we neglect that we’ve acquired folks down there 24 hours a day, seven days every week.”
As a part of his precedence to hunt alternatives for innovation and development throughout the ranks, Whitehead requested service members to offer suggestions to take again to the Pentagon.
“The go to was so nice for my Troopers,” Jones stated. “These guys [and gals] are all extremely motivated to start with, however having management from NGB come down and see what they do on a day-to-day foundation is an enormous deal.”
Unit leaders additionally briefed Whitehead on the morale of the Texas Guardsmen, noting an 86 p.c volunteer price for troops wishing to remain on the mission. These extension requests, leaders stated, might be attributed to the pay incentives, time without work to spend with household and the distinctive border mission. The Guard members can work in several items alongside companions just like the Border Patrol Division of Public Security.
Whitehead stated he was impressed with the service members’ work and dedication to the higher good.
“Top-of-the-line issues I appreciated about what I heard was that they’ve been right here lengthy sufficient to see the distinction they’ve made in what they’ve been doing,” he stated. “So, regardless of among the issues they’ve heard concerning the unfavorable social media or unfavorable press, they know that there’s been a optimistic distinction in what they’ve been doing since they’ve been right here.”
Requested why he visited throughout Thanksgiving, Whitehead stated he wished to make sure the Troopers and Airmen know navy leaders in Washington are conscious of their 24/7 dedication.
“When the vacations come round, I don’t know if folks have the impression that issues are halted due to it or that they’re simply comforted that we have now navy members down there on the Texas-Mexico border,“ he stated. “A few of our Guardsmen have households that they’re separated from, that’s not simply these deployed abroad however these deployed proper right here within the U.S.,
“So, it’s essential for the chief of the Nationwide Guard Bureau, myself, and the remainder of the management group to go down and inform them thanks for what they’re doing. We recognize what they’re doing, and we should allow them to know they’re standing in a niche that’s extraordinarily essential to our nation’s safety.”
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