{"id":12133,"date":"2023-05-22T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-05-22T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=12133"},"modified":"2023-05-24T06:50:49","modified_gmt":"2023-05-24T06:50:49","slug":"massachusetts-guard-delivers-firefighting-equipment-to-paraguay","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=12133","title":{"rendered":"Massachusetts Guard Delivers Firefighting Equipment to Paraguay"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. Gary Keefe, the adjutant general of Massachusetts, speaks with Paraguayan army Gen. Cesar A. Moreno, the Paraguayan Army commander, during a State Partnership Program event in Asunci\u00f3n, Paraguay, May 18, 2023.
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\n MILTON, Mass. — Staff Sgt. James Maltais, Sgt. Patrick McLaughlin and Pfc. John Jones of the 26th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade, Massachusetts National Guard, visited the Milton Fire Department to collect fire-retardant gear that was donated to the Military Division of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. This gear will be shipped to fire departments in Paraguay, who is a state partner with Massachusetts National Guard under the State Partnership Program.
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\n Paraguayan army members receive fire retardant gear donated by the Military Division of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as part of the National Guard\u2019s State Partnership Program in Asunci\u00f3n, Paraguay, May 18, 2023. Critical firefighting equipment was donated by Massachusetts fire departments, facilitated by the Massachusetts National Guard and the Military Division of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
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\n U.S. Air Force Col. Lisa Ahaesy, the director of staff of the Massachusetts Air National Guard, shakes hands with a member of the Paraguayan army at a State Partnership Program event in Asunci\u00f3n, Paraguay, May 18, 2023. Ahaesy supported the delivery of personal protective firefighting equipment donated by Massachusetts fire departments, facilitated by the Massachusetts National Guard and the Military Division of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
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ASUNCION, Paraguay \u2013 A delegation led by Maj. Gen. Gary Keefe, Massachusetts adjutant general, delivered critical firefighting gear to Paraguay, the Massachusetts National Guard\u2019s partner in the State Partnership Program, on May 16.<\/p>\n

Massachusetts fire departments contributed 1,000 sets of firefighter personal protective equipment and two fully equipped fire trucks to aid Paraguay\u2019s military firefighters. They made the first delivery of about 500 sets of PPE after Massachusetts\u2019 26th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade collected, organized and packaged the donations before shipping them to Paraguay aboard a Maine Air National Guard KC-135R Stratotanker from the 101st Air Refueling Wing. The rest of the equipment, to include two fully equipped fire trucks, is scheduled for delivery later this year.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis equipment will not only enhance the capabilities of the Paraguayan military forces but will also provide them with the necessary tools to protect the lives and property of their citizens. It is a gesture of friendship that embodies the true essence of our partnership,\u201d said Keefe. \u201cThis donation came from the lasting relationships formed between our state partnership team and fire departments across Massachusetts with the support of our citizens.\u201d<\/p>\n

Personal protective equipment can mean the difference between life and death for firefighters and military members. So, when U.S. Army Capt. Christopher McCrobie of the Massachusetts National Guard discovered Paraguayan firefighters were sustaining heavy injuries from heat exposure due to a lack of PPE, leading them to fight fires in shorts and sandals at times, the Massachusetts firefighting community responded.<\/p>\n

Over the past year McCrobie, the Massachusetts National Guard State Partnership program manager, and the MANG partnered to contact local fire departments to collect fire-retardant helmets, jackets, pants, vests and gloves. After collecting the equipment, McCrobie and the Massachusetts SPP staff worked directly with Paraguay\u2019s National Emergency Secretariat and fire brigades to strengthen Paraguay\u2019s fire prevention and firefighting capacity.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey don\u2019t have the resources that we have. Our gear falls out of National Fire Protection Agency standards every 10 years, even if it was never or lightly used,\u201d said McCrobie. \u201cThis was an easy way for fire departments who may have a lot of excess gear they can\u2019t use anymore due to regulatory standards to donate to our Military Division, so they can, in turn, give it to Paraguay.\u201d<\/p>\n

MANG\u2019s 179th and 180th Engineer Detachments (Firefighting) are scheduled to conduct training missions with their Paraguayan military and civilian counterparts after they receive all the donated equipment.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a great gesture from the Massachusetts National Guard, and will be a huge help for us, and will help us to be prepared for firefighting,\u201d said Paraguayan air force Lt. Col. Daniel Antunez, the liaison officer to the U.S. Embassy for the Paraguayan air force. \u201cFrom this, I can see that the people from Massachusetts really have the intention to tighten this partnership and reinforce this relationship.\u201d<\/p>\n

The training and donations are just the latest milestone in the MANG-Paraguay partnership, established in 2001 under Keefe\u2019s father, Maj. Gen. George Keefe, who was the 39th adjutant general of the Massachusetts National Guard. Paraguayan leaders lauded the multigenerational trust and capabilities forged through the program.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe SPP brings many, many programs for military engineers, aviation and peacekeeping missions,\u201d said retired Paraguayan army Master Sgt. Ruben Paniagua, who has witnessed the partnership mature since the first SPP exchange in 2001.<\/p>\n

At a Paraguayan state ceremony on May 19, Keefe addressed the program\u2019s history and future, crediting the mutually beneficial partnership as an enduring strength of the Massachusetts National Guard and America. The ceremony, also dedicated to Keefe\u2019s late father, commemorated the official reception of the firefighting equipment by each branch of the Paraguayan armed forces.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis partnership has paved the way for both of our nations to learn and grow together, ensuring that we remain prepared to face any challenges that come our way. Moreover, this partnership serves as a symbol of the enduring presence of the United States in Paraguay,\u201d Keefe said at the ceremony. \u201cAs we continue to strengthen our bonds, we reinforce our commitment to ensuring the safety and security of both our nations.\u201d<\/p>\n

National Guard news<\/a><\/p>\n

National Guard Facebook<\/a><\/p>\n

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State Partnership Program<\/a><\/p>\n

State Partnership Program’s 30th Anniversary <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

1 \/ 4 Show Caption + Hide Caption \u2013 U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. Gary Keefe, the adjutant general of Massachusetts, speaks with Paraguayan army Gen. Cesar A. Moreno, the Paraguayan Army commander, during a State Partnership Program event in Asunci\u00f3n, Paraguay, May 18, 2023. (Photo Credit: Sgt. 1st Class Whitney Hughes) VIEW ORIGINAL 2 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":12135,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12133","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12133","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12133"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12133\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12140,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12133\/revisions\/12140"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/12135"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12133"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12133"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12133"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}