Capital Region Professionals experience Army National Guard training firsthand during "Boss Lift"

Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve hosts employers and supervisors at Camp Smith Training site on Sept. 16

Camp Smith Training Site (09/19/2019) — Eight Capitol Region professionals got to sample the experience of being a citizen Soldier in the New York Army National Guard on Monday, Sept. 16, thanks to a "boss lift" program sponsored by the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve.

The eight were among 20 civilians who were flown to Camp Smith Training Site near Peekskill by UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter. Once on the ground, they toured the New York Army National Guard's newest maintenance facility, ate a lunch of MREs, and experienced the training simulators located at the post.

Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, commonly known as ESGR, is a federal program designed to help business owners and supervisors understand what the Guard members and reservists who work for them do.The goal, said Emil Baker, the ESGR outreach director for New York, is to ease the friction that can occur when a Guard Soldier or Airman asks for military leave. Bringing employers to Camp Smith to get a short taste of military life, is part of that, said Baker.

"It gives them the ability to understand that this is not just play time--the weekends that they go and train--this is an important mission," Baker said.

Baker is the owner of the Big Moose Deli in Hoosick Falls and volunteers with ESGR.

He escorted the Capital Region group, which also included Spectrum News Sports Director Marisa Jacques and Spectrum News Chief Cameraman Steven Kameka.

The Capital Region guests flew from the Army Aviation Support Facility at the Albany International Airport and back. A second group of ten people from Long Island flew from the flight facility at Ronkonkoma.

Taking part in the event were:

• Matthew Zink, Training Director for the Bricklayers and Allied Craft workers Union;
• Woody Miller, Field Representative for Local 2 Bricklayers Union;
• James Frankoski, Chief of Police for the Rensselaer Police Department;
• John Ferri, Talent Acquisition Specialist for Fedex Freight;
• Anthony DeJulio, a federal research scientist;
• Louis Delisle, vice president for human resources, Ball Beverage and Packaging;
• Craig Biondi, Vice President of Human Resources for Mirabito Energy Products.

Bosses can be nominated by the Guardsmen who work for them. In many instances ESGR invites business owners who have reached out for information about the Guard or reserves, Baker explained.

"A colleague of mine is in the National Guard, and he asked me if I would like to go for the day to shoot and see what they do so I decided to," said Anthony DeJulio, a research scientist.

"It was a wonderful opportunity to see what they do and take a helicopter ride. They went above and beyond what my expectations where," he added.

"i was offered to take a ride in a Black Hawk and it was hard to refuse," said Louis Delisle, vice president of human resources at Ball Beverage and Packaging in Saratoga Springs.

He has people who work for him who serve in the National Guard and he learmed more about what they do thanks to the boss lift, Delisle said.

"It's not just overseas stuff it is stuff for your state here at home to help out where it is needed in hurricanes and floods," he said."So I learned alot."

A high-point for the employers was the chance to fire M-4s and M-9 pistols on one of Camp Smith's ranges.

Sgt. 1st Class Frederick Goldacker, a member of the 2nd Battalion, 108th Infantry, and Sgt. Omar Ortega, a Soldier in the 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry, put the civilians through a quick safety class and then got them shooting."It was unbelievable," said Matthew Zink, the training director for the Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers Union in Albany.

Major Michael Sicinski, a member of the Camp Smith garrison, and 16 Soldiers who volunteered to come in for a duty day, orchestrated the event."I wanted to put on a showcase for the coolest stuff and give them the widest range of exposure, the best bang for the buck," Sicinski explained."The guys called it going Hollywood," he added.

To do that, Sicinski rolled out the most impressive simulators the New York Army National Guard has at Camp Smith.The employers experienced the Engagement Skills Trainer, in which they fired M-4s and M-9s at digital targets on standard Army qualification courses, and then conducted simulated missions.

"It was exciting and I hit the targets," said PSEG senior supervisor Lindsay McKinley. "I am a sharpshooter."

The bosses also got a chance to go through the Virtual Convoy Operations Trainer which allowed them to fire an M-2 .50 caliber machinegun from a simulated humvee.

The best and most impressive event, Sicinski said, was the Range-In-A-Box simulator. This system put the civilians in a close combat environment and let them shoot at real physical targets with soft pellet ammunition.

"That was a lot of fun," Delisle said.

"The simulators are actually awesome," Zink said. "It is amazing that you can actually practice without having to waste ammo and a chance of somebody getting hurt."

While the civilian guests had a great time in the simulators, the MRE lunch didn't go over as well as he thought it would, Sicinski admitted.

"The MREs were not a big hit," he said.

Most of the Soldiers who put on the ESGR event volunteered to take a day off from their civilian jobs to be there, Sicinski said.

One of those was Staff Sgt. Arthur Harrison, whose drill job is to run the convoy operations trainer.He was pleased to be able to be part of the ESGR event, Harrison said."It is kind of important and I am glad this program is here," he said. "This way the employers get to see exactly what people do when they come here to train."

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