{"id":18706,"date":"2023-07-13T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-07-13T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=18706"},"modified":"2023-07-14T06:41:46","modified_gmt":"2023-07-14T06:41:46","slug":"connecticut-guard-helps-build-homes-for-native-veterans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=18706","title":{"rendered":"Connecticut Guard Helps Build Homes for Native Veterans"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n Airmen from the 103rd Airlift Wing use a skid steer to remove excess cement around the slab of a future single-family house meant for disabled veterans of Cherokee Nation in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, June 29, 2023.
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\n Airmen from the 103rd Airlift Wing raise plywood panels to the exterior wall of a future single-family house meant for disabled veterans of Cherokee Nation in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, June 29, 2023.
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\n Airmen from the 103rd Airlift Wing work together to move a bathtub into a single-family house meant for disabled veterans of Cherokee Nation in Talequah, Oklahoma, June 29, 2023.
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\n An Airman from the 103rd Airlift Wing uses a skid steer to transfer dirt to a dump truck at the Cherokee Veterans Housing Initiative construction site in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, June 29, 2023.
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TAHLEQUAH, Okla. \u2013 Engineers from various squadrons of the 103rd Airlift Wing worked on building homes for disabled Cherokee veterans June 26 \u2013 July 7.<\/p>\n

The work is part of the multi-year rotational project known as the Cherokee Veterans Housing Initiative, which provides training for the Airmen and 21 houses built by the project\u2019s completion.<\/p>\n

Air Force Master Sgt. Jon Delaney, the 103rd Civil Engineer Squadron\u2019s Prime Base Engineer Emergency Force manager, said most of the Airmen on the mission have non-engineering civilian careers and those who don\u2019t typically work on new construction, so the project was an excellent opportunity for the Airmen, to put their trade skills to use, especially those they don\u2019t get to use regularly during drill days and annual training.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt feels pretty good [going back to the basics],\u201d said Tech. Sgt. Jeffrey Cooper, a full-time HVAC\/R specialist with the ACS out of Orange, Connecticut. \u201cThe 103rd Air Control Squadron is a tactical military unit, so all our equipment is rapid deployable, I\u2019m deployable, and this is outside of the scope of what I normally do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cooper also said most of his day-to-day work at the ACS revolves around maintenance of the building\u2019s HVAC systems to ensure the server rooms, which are mission critical for the unit, receive proper airflow and temperatures don\u2019t get too high.<\/p>\n

During the unit\u2019s two weeks on the worksite, the Airmen oversaw almost every aspect of the construction project, from framing walls and hanging sheetrock to running electrical lines and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning ductwork. They were also working on multiple houses at once; while one team was erecting the framework of one home, others were running wire, plumbing, and ductwork in the shell of another built by the previous rotation.<\/p>\n

While there was a clear consensus that the Airmen appreciated the quality of training they received, it was also evident that the mission\u2019s purpose was of an even greater value.<\/p>\n

Cooper said the National Guard is uniquely responsible for serving the community. While most of those missions come in storm response or other domestic emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic, being a part of something like this was very rewarding. They were honoring the service and sacrifice of these veterans.<\/p>\n

The Cherokee Veterans Housing initiative is a collaboration between the Defense Department\u2019s Innovative Readiness Training program and the Cherokee Nation that constructs new single-family homes and supports infrastructure for eligible Cherokee Nation veterans and their families.<\/p>\n

Innovative Readiness Training is a collaborative program that leverages military contributions and community resources to multiply value and cost savings for participants. Communities typically provide materials and essential services, while military units contribute personnel and training resources. IRT missions produce mission-ready forces, civil-military partnerships, and stronger communities.<\/p>\n

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

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

National Guard Twitter<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

1 \/ 4 Show Caption + Hide Caption \u2013 Airmen from the 103rd Airlift Wing use a skid steer to remove excess cement around the slab of a future single-family house meant for disabled veterans of Cherokee Nation in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, June 29, 2023. (Photo Credit: Timothy Koster) VIEW ORIGINAL 2 \/ 4 Show Caption […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":18708,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18706","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\/18706","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=18706"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18706\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18713,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18706\/revisions\/18713"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/18708"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=18706"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=18706"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=18706"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}