Photo By Master Sgt. Thomas Duval | A formation of Turkish Soldiers look on as Lt. Col. Lawrence "Larry" Muennich,...... read more read more
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CAMP BONDSTEEL, Kosovo— Multinational Battle Group-East welcomed a new team of aviators to their formation during a transfer of authority ceremony, held on Camp Bondsteel, Kosovo, Nov. 5, 2016.
During the ceremony, the Indiana National Guard’s 2nd Battalion, 238th Aviation Regiment assumed command of the MNBG-E’s southern command post, from the Arizona National Guard’s 2nd Assault Helicopter Battalion, 285th Aviation Regiment.
Led by Lt. Col. Lawrence “Larry” Muennich, the 2-238th General Support Aviation Battalion will provide airlift capabilities and will be joined by citizen-Soldiers from Georgia and Texas, who will help provide medical evacuation and maintenance assets to the battle group.
Together the three-state unit, deemed Task Force Raptor, will be responsible for supporting Kosovo Force (KFOR) air operations and will lend support to 30 troop-contributing nations, during a combination of both real-world and simulated training exercises aimed at supporting peace in the region. Additionally, Muennich and his team bring their own set of goals to Kosovo.
“Our goals are really two-fold,” said Muennich. “Number one is to meet our mission, which is to provide a safe and secure environment and freedom of movement within Kosovo. We are going to do that through air and ground operations working with the international communities and the institutions within Kosovo and our multinational partners. Second to that, this is a great training-rich environment here in Kosovo, so we have an opportunity to develop Soldiers, develop leaders and do collective training that we in the National Guard don’t get the opportunity to do very often.”
Muennich said he will challenge his Soldiers to meet these goals daily.
“I expect my Soldiers to be engaged every day,” he added. “I expect my leaders to set the example, I expect my younger Soldiers to have an opportunity to do and lead where they never have before but at the end of the day what I expect my Soldiers to do, is to be Soldiers, represent the US and be engaged.”
For the team to be successful, Muennich, a Kentucky native, said his Soldiers will have to be more than a team, they will have to become family.
“My advice to my team is to become a family. Work together, learn from each other, that’s the way you get better,” Muennich said. “It’s ok if we fail, what’s important is that we learn and we get better.”
If all goes as Muennich plans, the 140 Soldiers that deployed to Kosovo will have plenty of opportunities to build upon their family, to include multinational partners.
“Working in a NATO-led environment gives us the ability to do things with multinational partners, that we would otherwise not have the opportunity to do,” Muennich said. “Personally I feel honored for this opportunity. I do truly believe in the philosophy of mission first, people always and we as a task force will only be successful, by making sure our Soldiers are successful.”
Although Muennich said his team is excited for the next nine months, outgoing Command Sgt. Maj. Michelle Johnson, senior enlisted advisor for the 2-285th AHB, said the ceremony is bittersweet.
“Emotions are running really high, excitement is really high,” Johnson said. “I think we are all going to go home better than when we came but at the same time it’s hard to leave because you’ve met new people, made new friends and built so many relationships with our multinational partners, and the Kosovo people, that it’s bittersweet.”
Apart from the relationships built during their time here, Johnson said she is so proud of the growth she has seen in her Soldiers over the last nine months and will miss the closeness they shared while supporting peace.
Johnson and her team of Arizona Guardsmen will return home to their families throughout November and will look to be fully reunited in time for the holiday season.
| Date Taken: | 11.05.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 11.05.2016 13:07 |
| Story ID: | 213919 |
| Location: | CAMP BONDSTEEL, ZZ |
| Hometown: | INDIANAPOLIS, IN, US |
| Hometown: | PHOENIX, AZ, US |
| Web Views: | 819 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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