SOUTH PORTLAND

Maine Air National Guard, Montenegro have joint event

The Maine Air National Guard hosted members of the Montenegrin military during a communications familiarization event from June 1-5. The 243rd Engineering Installations Squadron and the 265th Combat Communications Squadron provided activities ranging from antenna tower climbing to operations of complex communications systems.

“The Maine National Guard has enjoyed an expanding relationship with Montenegro for over 15 years,” said 2nd Lt. Omar Gonzaga, operations officer for the 265th CBCS. “These opportunities allow us to not only showcase some state-of-the-art equipment, but also provides our guests with examples of best practices on how to plan and implement various resources. They also were able to provide us with some valuable insights, making it a two-way flow of information.”

The Balkan country of Montenegro, located on the coast of the Adriatic Sea, declared its independence on June 3, 2006. On Nov. 20, 2006, Montenegro signed a bilateral affairs agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense and established a partnership with through the National Guard State Partnership Program.

BRUNSWICK

Engineers conduct top enlisted changeover

The Maine Army National Guard’s 133rd Engineer Battalion held a change of responsibility ceremony at the Brunswick Armed Forces Reserve Center June 4.

Command Sgt. Maj. Alpha Williams relinquished responsibility to Command Sgt. Maj. Edward Graves.

Both Graves and Williams have an extensive history with the 133rd Engineer Battalion.
Williams enlisted in 2000 and started his career with the 152nd Support Maintenance Company. He has served as the command sergeant major of the 133rd since July 2019.

Graves enlisted in the Army in 1991 and transferred to the Maine Army National Guard in 1998, serving as a driver for the 133rd’s Headquarters and Support Company. Graves deployed to Iraq in 2004 and 2013 with the 133rd, and has served as first sergeant for both the 133rd’s Headquarters and Headquarters Company in Brunswick and the 136th Engineer Company out of Lewiston and Skowhegan.

AUGUSTA

Maine soldier recognized for designing national leader’s logo

Senior Enlisted Adviser Tony Whitehead, senior adviser to the chief of the National Guard Bureau (NGB), honored Sgt. 1st Class Alyson Pelletier, whose design was chosen from over 20 entries from 54 states and territories as the new brand for the office of the NGB senior enlisted adviser.

Whitehead said Pelletier’s design resonated with him because he felt it “embodied history, the present, and the future,” and that he appreciated her humble conversation with him when he called to congratulate her, noting that she personified “a spirit of service.”

A public affairs specialist by trade, Pelletier currently serves as the marketing noncommissioned officer for the Maine Army National Guard’s Recruiting and Retention Battalion. She lives in Winthrop.

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