Wa Army National Guard - Sergeant Kyle Conley, Expert Jillian Bohlke and Expert Alex Wunderlich pose around Washington, D.C., in April 2021.
The Jan. 6 riot at the nation's capitol building prompted law enforcement officials to call for more help, especially as the presidential inauguration approaches and a new administration takes office.
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The Washington National Guard was the group that responded to the call. Almost five months later, with a relatively quiet D.
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"It wasn't crazy and we're thankful it wasn't," said Sgt. Kyle Conley with the Washington National Guard. "We're all happy to be here to support the Capitol Police, but we're also looking forward to giving back."
Sergeant Conley has been a member of the National Guard for eight years. He recently hit several milestones: starting a Kirkland-based trucking company; buy a house; I got a new puppy. But instead of spending time with these milestones, Conley is among several hundred National Guard members who have been activated and sent to DC.
It's the final deployment of an "off" year for the Washington National Guard, which has sent members to everything from wildfires to the nation's capital.
"It's only been eight months and it's been one of many triggers (for me)," Conley said. "That's unheard of."
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"In other words, in my eight years, seven of those (activations) have been activated or pending activation at some point." And then all of a sudden, it's like valuing all eight years in one year."
The Washington deployment is just the tip of the iceberg for activation. In a typical year, the Guard deploys about 150 members to respond to wildfires, floods or election security.
Since the start of the pandemic in 2020, the Guard has activated at least 1,000 members at a time, with a peak of 4,500 activations in June.
In addition to routine disaster relief, the Garda has been activated for civil unrest and a number of pandemic needs: food banks, Covid testing sites, contact tracing sites and mass vaccination. When the state Department of Employment Security was hit by a flood of unemployment claims (and massive fraud), the Guard was sent there to help.
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By 2021, the number of Covid cases in Washington state (at that time) appears to have decreased. At the time, the nation's Capitol building was in turmoil, prompting the National Guard to deploy its members across the country.
The Washington National Guard was activated shortly after January 6 to send 400 members to the District of Columbia. They were originally sent to help D.C. prepare for the presidential inauguration. The guard has since been installed and is due to remain in place until mid-May.
U.S. Army Sgt. Kyle Conley, 1st Battalion, 161st Infantry Regiment, Washington National Guard, poses near the U.S. Capitol Square in Washington, DC, April 10, 2021.
"We're in one of the Senate buildings near the Capitol and we're just on standby," Conley said. "We are there, physically present and ready to respond if something happens."
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That's what it feels like to be on standby - waiting in case the Capitol Police call for help.
"If we have to put it on and go out, we have riot gear," Conley said. "We try to fill the time with training. There are a lot of processes and other things involved in controlling this mess... so we don't twiddle our thumbs all day.
For six years, National Guard Specialist Jillian Bohlke bartended in Vancouver, Washington. He is also a college student. Unlike other branches of the military, members of the Guard are basically like Bolke - they work during the day when they are called up.
Last year, instead of serving beer or going to a long class, Bohlke was mostly with the Guard, working at food banks and being assigned to civil unrest. Now he's in DC.
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U.S. Army Spc. Jillian Bohlke, 2nd Battalion, 146th Field Artillery Regiment, Washington National Guard, poses for a photo near the U.S. Capitol Square in Washington, D.C., April 10, 2021.
"The start of 2020 was a very big change for the Guard," Bohlke said. - So far we have only completed our monthly training.
But in 2020, most soldiers will spend months at food banks, vaccination sites, and D.C.
"I live for the little things right now," he said. He said he was looking forward to seeing his family and dogs again and drinking Northwest coffee. "Home-brewed coffee, like freshly roasted beans," he said. This is not the case here at all.
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He recently found a moment of joy when he passed Stumptown, a coffee shop in DC.
U.S. Army Spc. Alex Wunderlich, 898th Brigade Engineer Battalion, Washington National Guard, poses for a photo near the U.S. Capitol Square in Washington, DC, April 10, 2021.
Expert Alex Wunderlich usually spends his time on the mountain or on the ski slopes at this time of year. He works at Clockwork, a tech startup in Seattle, and has been a member of the Guard for three years.
"It was definitely a challenge to get this far last year," Wunderlich said. "For me, this is my fifth activation. So we kind of know the drill. Whenever I get called at the last minute, it's not as noisy as the first two activations.
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"I personally want to buy a house and plan a wedding," he said. "It's hard to see your friends go on a trip that you have to go on, but at the same time, employers, families, friends - they know. They understand what we signed up for.” Staff Sgt. Melinda Grounds, a medic with the 141st Medical Group and a registered nurse in Idaho, surveys a visitor at the mass vaccination site at the Clark County Fair on Jan. 28, 2021 in Ridgefield, Washington. The Washington National Guard will have medics on hand at four locations and will administer the actual vaccine at each location, as well as assist with logistical and administrative needs. (Photo: Joseph Simandel) SEE ORIGINAL
"Last year was a challenging year," said Washington National Guard Maj. Gen. Brett Daugherty. "Not only do we continue to support the COVID mission, but we've been called into two of the worst rounds of civil unrest in our state's history, we've seen wildfires spread across eastern and western Washington, we've seen attempted cyber attacks on our state network and we are still deploying. 1,000 Guardsmen are on federal deployments overseas."
When Washington state reported the nation's first confirmed case of COVID-19 in late January, no one could have imagined what we were in for. Weeks later, after the first death from COVID-19 and rising numbers of sick people, Governor Jay Inslee announced that the state would close non-essential businesses and schools.
With people out of work, the need for food aid has skyrocketed. Meanwhile, volunteers who normally run food banks have been told to stay home, as many of them are among the population at risk of COVID-19.
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In March 2020, Washington National Guard personnel received their first mission, providing food to many food banks across the state.
"With so many food banks in need of help, we have activated our trustees to help manage the food banks as demand increases," Daugherty said. "We then moved from food banks to distributing personal protective equipment, transporting ventilators and beds, and staffing COVID-19 testing sites."
By June, more than 1,000 Guard members were supporting the state's COVID-19 response. In addition to working in food banks, the guards helped the Ministry of Health map the spread of the virus and collect testing kits. Employees also assisted the Department of Employment Security by investigating unemployment claims and making sure Washingtonians received unemployment benefits.
"We had Guardsmen working in a variety of roles in the fight against COVID-19, and everywhere I went, I heard the same thing: how amazing our Soldiers and Soldiers are," Daugherty said.
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Washington's National Guard was tasked with a different mission in June as civil unrest following the killing of George Floyd reignited racial tensions across America. The peaceful protests protected illegal actors who incited violence, leading to overnight riots in Seattle, Tacoma and Spokane. More than 1,500 guardsmen have been activated to support law enforcement officials in restoring peace.
"Our Soldiers and Airmen were prepared for whatever happened, whether it was peaceful or violent," said Sgt. Maj. Travis Wise, NCO during the activation. "We reminded them that these people are our neighbors, our family and our friends. We are here to serve them so they can protest freely; we did the right thing.
As the summer began with civil unrest, the season ended with the Washington Department of Natural Resources Ranger supporting multiple wildfires across the state. More than 50 Guardsmen went to Davenport to help with the Whitney fire, while a helicopter crew dropped water on Palmer in Evans.
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