Army National Guard Maj. Ben Genthner takes command of New York City Guard unit

Courtesy Photo | New York Army National Guard Maj. Ben Genthner, a Schaghticoke resident, has been named commander of a joint New York Army and Air Guard unit which trains to identify chemical, biological and radiological weapons.  

LATHAM, NY, UNITED STATES

03.21.2014

Courtesy Story

New York National Guard

LATHAM, N.Y. - New York Army National Guard Maj. Ben Genthner, a Schaghticoke resident, has been named commander of a joint New York Army and Air Guard unit which trains to identify chemical, biological and radiological weapons.

Genthner, who joined the Army in 1994, will take command of the 24th Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Team in April. The unit is based at Fort Hamilton in New York City and provides support to local, state, and federal law enforcement entities in the New York metropolitan area.

Genthner currently serves as the deputy commander of the New York National Guard's 2nd Civil Support Team, which is headquartered at Stratton Air National Guard Base in Scotia.

New York is one of four states with two Civil Support Teams. The members of the 22-member teams receive specialized training in responding to and identifying potential weapons of mass destruction.

Genthner, enlisted in the Army in 1994 as a Patriot Missile crew member. In 1997 he was selected to attend Siena College on a four-year Army ROTC scholarship and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in 2001.

He served as a signal officer in Iraq in 2003-2004 and also in the Republic of Korea. He joined the New York Army National Guard in 2007 and assisted in the training and activation of the 24th Civil Support Team in 2010. He has been deputy commander of the 2nd CST since 2011.

Genthner's military education includes the Signal Officer Advanced Course and the Command and General Staff College Intermediate Level Education.

His military awards include the Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal, and National Defense Service Medal w/star, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Korean Defense Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, the Presidential Unit Citation and the Airborne School Badge.

• Date Taken: 03.21.2014
• Date Posted: 03.21.2014 12:15
• Story ID: 122363
• Location: LATHAM, NY, US
• Hometown: SCHAGHTICOKE, NY, US