Ohio National Guard promotes incentives and pride in serving

It's not often a Brigadier General walks the halls of your television station, but Tuesday afternoon, General Matthew Woodruff, the Commanding Officer of the Ohio Army National Guard stopped by WFMJ to express his gratitude for the station's support and partnership with the Ohio Association of Broadcasters in promoting the efforts of the Ohio National Guard.

Woodruff presented 21 WFMJ General Manager Jack Grdic with a challenge coin.

As the Assistant Adjutant General for Army, Woodruff commands the nearly 11,000 soldiers in the Ohio Army National Guard, a unit that played a vital and multi-faceted role in responding to the Covid-19 pandemic in Ohio.

"We're all familiar with the three years of Covid response efforts and the National Guard was in prisons, they were in food banks, they were in nursing facilities, hospitals, we were in a mass vaccination site in the Cleveland area, that was just a few things that we've done," General Woodruff said. "We support civil unrest. We provide assistance so that our citizens can peacefully protest and observe their amendment rights."

Woodruff says about 80 percent of their force are traditional Guardsman.

"They do the one weekend a month and two weeks in the Summer," General Woodruff said. "Then something happens, we activate them, they come and support whatever that need is, so they walk away from their civilian employment and come to serve us. That's why it's really critical for us to build this team and that team is more than the soldier. The team is the soldier, their family, their employer and the community and if we can build that family and team together, then those things are easier to transition between civilian employment and military service."

Despite their significant contributions, General Woodruff acknowledged the ongoing challenges, particulary in recruitment.

"When we are looking at the eligible population, typically we think about 18-to-24 year olds, about 23% of those are even eligible to serve," General Woodruff said. "When you think 77% of the population is ineligible to serve at those ages and those vary from physical, medical type issues. It could be academic and inability to pass our entrance exam, the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery and then we have moral issues where they have been convicted of a crime that just isn't compatible with the values of the Army National Guard."

But General Woodruff emphasized the benefits people can gain by serving.

"Healthcare, dental care and life insurance. Right now, for a single soldier it costs about 65 dollars a month to get full medical coverage which is a pretty good deal compared to what the civilian market is. We have a scholarship program. If you sign up to serve and go to a state funded school, a public university, 100% tuition is paid for by the state and National Guard. If you go to a private school, it's a percentage but it's still a significant portion of that tuition and this year we just recently expanded to trade certifications. If college, a four-year degree is not your thing and you want to be an electrician, plumber, a truck driver, an IT specialist that needs certifications, we fund all of those programs as well and then you can, at 20-years-old, two years after your apprenticeship ends, you can be making $80,000 as an electrician in your community."

With the Ohio National Guard continuing to be an integral part of the state's response to various challenges, Woodruff says its a great opportunity to enhance your community.

The stories of each individual that served, you can tell, that everyone's life that has served and is with us has been better because of our service," General Woodruff said. "I have been in 32 years and I have enjoyed every moment of it, I love this organization and I truly do feel like it is a family that tries to take care of every single individual. My message would be we're part of your community. The Ohio National Guard has existed in Youngstown since before Ohio was a state. So, the militias that developed into the National Guard that we know today and we have two units here in Youngstown, the 838th MP Company and we have the 237th Maintenance Company and so we have phenomenal ties to the community. We are part of this community, you live here, you work here, you serve here and I would just say the opportunities to be your best self, exist in this organization."

If you would like to get in contact with an Ohio National Guard recruiter, just go here.