Minnesota National Guard

Please join us in congratulating Minnesota Air National Guard Tech. Sgt. Krishia Baltazar as the Outstanding NCO of the Year for Region 4! She competed against the top enlisted Airmen in the region, including Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan. This award honors her accomplishments in job performance, leadership, community involvement, and personal achievement over the past year. Congratulations, Tech. Sgt. Baltazar!

Beyond the Yellow Ribbon partnered with the Camp Ripley Training Center’s vehicle maintenance shops to provide a welcome home meal on Feb. 13, celebrating the return of Minnesota’s 34th Infantry Division service members from deployment. The turkeys for the meal that was locally prepared and served to 175 service members were donated by the Minnesota Wild and Hunters Harvest as part of BTYR’s Hero Meals initiative. Read more at the link below. https://lnkd.in/ew_UA2sM

Growing up in a close-knit community in the Oti region of Ghana, Airman 1st Class Shine Kwabaffour was surrounded by strong bonds of friendship and family. After joining the Minnesota Air National Guard, he found that sense of community again. More: https://lnkd.in/eraeKeFN

Minnesota's Beyond the Yellow Ribbon provided food, warm beverages, and support for participants on the last day of the Minnesota National Guard's annual cold-weather operations course at Camp Ripley on Feb. 8, 2025. Read more below. https://lnkd.in/ewAegnEn

The Resilience, Risk Reduction, and Suicide Prevention, or R3SP, program provides Guard members with critical resources that put an emphasis on the overall fitness and readiness of Minnesota National Guard members. Read more below. https://bit.ly/3FeSMFy

Three aerospace medical technicians and a physician assistant with the Minnesota National Guard’s 148th Fighter Wing provided medical support to 70 Airmen from 37 Air National Guard wings during a recent cold weather course at Camp Ripley. Read more below. https://bit.ly/3QA0xII

Monday, the Minnesota National Guard celebrated the 102nd birthday of World War II Veteran and Red Bull Soldier Don Halverson at the 34th Infantry Division “Red Bull” Headquarters in Arden Hills. During the event, Halverson was awarded the Order of St. George—Bronze Medallion.

Nearly 100 Minnesota National Guard medical professionals recently gathered at the 133rd Airlift Wing, Saint Paul, for the 2025 Joint Military Medical Summit, Feb. 15-16, 2025. Read more at the link below. https://lnkd.in/e-Gb7grg

Please take a moment today to remember Sgt. Jesse M. Lhotka, Staff Sgt. David F. Day and 1st Lt. Jason G. Timmerman who were killed February 21, 2005, while serving with the Minnesota National Guard's 1-151 Field Artillery-Thunder in Baghdad, Iraq. (More: https://lnkd.in/gfgzmHpz)

70 Air National Guard airmen gathered at Camp Ripley Training Center, Minn., from Jan. 27-Feb. 8, 2025, to train and conduct mission-essential tasks in extreme temperatures, during the Air National Guard’s Cold Weather Operations Course. Read more below. https://bit.ly/3COYnSt