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Pfc. Keyante Anthony, assigned to the North Carolina Army National Guard’s 883rd Engineer Company, registers a patient at a COVID-19 test site in High Point, North Carolina on Nov. 13, 2020. More than 170 North Carolina National Guard Soldiers and Airmen are activated across the state to support N.C. Emergency Management’s response to the pandemic.
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Tech. Sgt. Tony Wyatt, assigned to the North Carolina Air National Guard’s 263rd Combat Communications Squadron, left, and Burneta Barley, a registered nurse with Rhino Medical Services, talk to a patient in line at a drive-thru COVID-19 test site in High Point, North Carolina on Nov. 13, 2020. More than 170 North Carolina National Guard Soldiers and Airmen are activated across the state to support N.C. Emergency Management’s response to the pandemic. (U.S. Army Photo by Staff Sgt. Mary Junell)
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Pfc. Keyante Anthony, assigned to the North Carolina Army National Guard’s 883rd Engineer Company, enters a patient’s information into a computer at a COVID-19 test site in High Point, North Carolina on Nov. 13, 2020. More than 170 North Carolina National Guard Soldiers and Airmen are activated across the state to support N.C. Emergency Management’s response to the pandemic.
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Tech. Sgt. Tony Wyatt, assigned to the North Carolina Air National Guard’s 263rd Combat Communications Squadron, passes an information packet to a patient at a COVID-19 test site in High Point, North Carolina on Nov. 13, 2020. More than 170 North Carolina National Guard Soldiers and Airmen are activated across the state to support N.C. Emergency Management’s response to the pandemic.
(Photo Credit: Staff Sgt. Mary Junell)VIEW ORIGINAL5 / 15Show Caption +Hide Caption –
Tech. Sgt. Tony Wyatt, assigned to the North Carolina Air National Guard’s 263rd Combat Communications Squadron, gives masks to a patient at a COVID-19 test site in High Point, North Carolina on Nov. 13, 2020. More than 170 North Carolina National Guard Soldiers and Airmen are activated across the state to support N.C. Emergency Management’s response to the pandemic. NCNG continues COVID response efforts
(Photo Credit: Staff Sgt. Mary Junell)VIEW ORIGINAL6 / 15Show Caption +Hide Caption –
Cars line up at a COVID-19 test site where a team of five North Carolina National Guard Soldiers and Airmen are assisting the medical team in High Point, North Carolina on Nov. 13, 2020. More than 170 North Carolina National Guard Soldiers and Airmen are activated across the state to support N.C. Emergency Management’s response to the pandemic.
(Photo Credit: Staff Sgt. Mary Junell)VIEW ORIGINAL7 / 15Show Caption +Hide Caption –
Tech. Sgt. Tony Wyatt, assigned to the North Carolina Air National Guard’s 263rd Combat Communications Squadron, left, and Spc. Bennie Kinley, assigned to the North Carolina Army National Guard’s 875th Engineer Company, right, gather information from a patient in line at a drive-thru COVID-19 test site in High Point, North Carolina on Nov. 13, 2020. More than 170 North Carolina National Guard Soldiers and Airmen are activated across the state to support N.C. Emergency Management’s response to the pandemic.
(Photo Credit: Staff Sgt. Mary Junell)VIEW ORIGINAL8 / 15Show Caption +Hide Caption –
Pfc. Pedro Dominguez, assigned to the North Carolina Army National Guard’s 875th Engineer Company, enters a patient’s information at a drive-thru COVID-19 test site in High Point, North Carolina on Nov. 13, 2020. More than 170 North Carolina National Guard Soldiers and Airmen are activated across the state to support N.C. Emergency Management’s response to the pandemic.
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Tech. Sgt. Tony Wyatt, assigned to the North Carolina Air National Guard’s 263rd Combat Communications Squadron, gets information from a patient at a COVID-19 test site in High Point, North Carolina on Nov. 13, 2020. More than 170 North Carolina National Guard Soldiers and Airmen are activated across the state to support N.C. Emergency Management’s response to the pandemic.
(Photo Credit: Staff Sgt. Mary Junell)VIEW ORIGINAL10 / 15Show Caption +Hide Caption –
North Carolina National Guardsmen, Cpl. Dakotah Teter, left, a combat engineer with the 151st Mobility Augmentation Company, and 1st Lt. Charles Brown, center, a platoon leader with the 878th Engineer Company, work alongside volunteers to prepare food at the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina in Raleigh, North Carolina on November 12, 2020. A team of five Guardsmen is stationed at the food bank as part of the 175 Army and Air Guardsmen who were activated on Sept. 23, 2020, to support COVID response efforts across the state.
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North Carolina National Guardsmen, First Lt. Charles Brown, left a platoon leader with the 878th Engineer Company, and Cpl. Dakotah Teter, center, a combat engineer with the 151st Mobility Augmentation Company, works alongside volunteers to prepare food at the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina in Raleigh, North Carolina on November 12, 2020. A team of five Guardsmen is stationed at the food bank as part of the 175 Army and Air Guardsmen who were activated on Sept. 23, 2020, to support COVID response efforts across the state.
(Photo Credit: Staff Sgt. Mary Junell)VIEW ORIGINAL12 / 15Show Caption +Hide Caption –
North Carolina National Guardsman Cpl. Dakotah Teter, a combat engineer with the 151st Mobility Augmentation Company, works alongside volunteers to prepare food at the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina in Raleigh, North Carolina on November 12, 2020. A team of five Guardsmen is stationed at the food bank as part of the 175 Army and Air Guardsmen who were activated on Sept. 23, 2020, to support COVID response efforts across the state.
(Photo Credit: Staff Sgt. Mary Junell)VIEW ORIGINAL13 / 15Show Caption +Hide Caption –
North Carolina National Guardsman, 1st Lt. Charles Brown, a platoon leader with the 878th Engineer Company, works alongside volunteers to prepare food at the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina in Raleigh, North Carolina on November 12, 2020. A team of five Guardsmen is stationed at the food bank as part of the 177 Army and Air Guardsmen who were activated Sept. 23, 2020, to support COVID response efforts across the state.
(Photo Credit: Staff Sgt. Mary Junell)VIEW ORIGINAL14 / 15Show Caption +Hide Caption –
North Carolina National Guardsman, First Lt. Charles Brown, a platoon leader with the 878th Engineer Company, works alongside volunteers to prepare food at the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina in Raleigh, North Carolina on November 12, 2020. A team of five Guardsmen is stationed at the food bank as part of the 175 Army and Air Guardsmen who were activated on Sept. 23, 2020, to support COVID response efforts across the state.
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North Carolina National Guardsmen, Cpl. Dakotah Teter, center, a combat engineer with the 151st Mobility Augmentation Company, and 1st Lt. Charles Brown, right, a platoon leader with the 878th Engineer Company, work alongside volunteers to prepare food at the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina in Raleigh, North Carolina on November 12, 2020. A team of five Guardsmen arNCNG continues COVID response efforts stationed at the food bank as part of the 175 Army and Air Guardsmen who were activated Sept. 23, 2020, to support COVID response efforts across the state.
(Photo Credit: Staff Sgt. Mary Junell)VIEW ORIGINAL
RALEIGH, N.C. – Many states are still responding to problems brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, including an increased need for testing and assistance from food banks.
That is where the North Carolina National Guard steps in. In late September, more than 170 Army and Air Guardsmen were activated to support their state and ease the pressure of responding to a crisis.
One of the areas where Guard members are supporting North Carolina most is at food banks across the state.
Mary Maxton, the manager of volunteer engagement at the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina, said the number of people in need in the 34 counties they support has increased by one-third, from 600,000 to 800,000.
The Raleigh-based food bank where Maxton works now has a team of five North Carolina Guard members filling the gaps where their volunteer base has decreased from around 90 volunteers a day to 20.
“It’s challenging to be here all day for any volunteer, and I know five days in a row is a lot, so we really appreciate the [North Carolina National Guard] and all they do,” Maxton said. “It’s been a tremendous help. It’s very nice to have a consistent five people coming in every day.”
For many of the Soldiers, including 1st Lt. Charles Brown, a platoon leader with the 878th Engineer Company, working at the food bank is a fulfilling experience.
“I’m glad me and my guys could help out here,” Brown said. “This is really what I signed up for six years ago, to serve my community.”
The five-person team works on all the projects that come through the food bank, including distribution, which brings the Soldiers face-to-face with the people they are supporting.
“It’s really great to see some of the faces light up when they get the food that they need,” said Cpl. Dakotah Teter, a combat engineer with the 151st Mobility Augmentation Company.
But food insecurity isn’t the only need Guard members are supporting. Several teams are stationed at COVID-19 test sites across North Carolina, including in High Point, where four Soldiers and one Airman are working with Rhino Medical Services at a drive-thru test site.
The Guard members register patients to get tested and help with the logistics of operating the site.
Burneta Barley, a registered nurse and team lead with Rhino Medical Services, said having the Guard support means the nurses can focus on doing more tests.
“We’re averaging between 80 and 90 a day,” Barley said. “Everyone works well together. It’s almost like a family, to be honest, because we spend almost six to seven hours together a day.”
Although it is not uncommon for Guard members to support their communities during times of need, the work they do when responding to a hurricane or winter storm more closely resembles their military jobs than the work many of them are doing to support the COVID-19 response.
“Going from our regular military jobs of digging in the dirt to helping out with COVID tests, it’s an entirely different monster in my opinion,” said Spc. Bennie Kinley with the 875th Engineer Company. “It’s a different experience when you’ve got people you know in your local community showing up.”
Since March, Guard members have helped distribute more than 6.2 million food bank meals and assisted with testing of almost 21,000 people.
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