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NY Army Guard Col. Martin Ortiz, a Port Chester resident and Army doctor, retires after 36 years of military service

Camp Smith Training Site, New York (10/18/2022) — New York Army National Guard Col. Martin Ortiz, an Army doctor, and Port Chester resident, who is a veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, ended a 36-year military career on October 16 during a retirement ceremony at Camp Smith Training Site near Peekskill.

Ortiz was awarded the Legion of Merit, and the New York State Conspicuous Service Medal during the ceremony in recognition of this service over many years.

Ortiz enlisted in the Army in 1977 and initially served as a musician in the Army Band in Camp Zama Japan. In 1982 he enrolled in the Army's Reserve Officer Training Corps program at the University of California, Los Angeles, and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the California Army National Guard in 1984.

In 1986 Ortiz transferred to the Inactive Ready Reserve while attending pre-medical School and then medical School. He left the Reserve in 1992 but then rejoined the Army in 2000 as a Medical Corps officer and transferred to the New York Army National Guard in 2001.

Ortiz served as the battalion surgeon for the 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry Regiment, which is headquartered at the Lexington Avenue Armory in Manhattan. He deployed with the Battalion to Iraq in 2004-2005.

In 2007 he deployed to Iraq for a second time with the 466th Medical Company, headquartered in Queensbury, and in 2010 he deployed to Iraq again with the 369th Sustainment Brigade, which is based at the Harlem Armory.

He deployed to Afghanistan in 2012 with the 427th Brigade Support Battalion's medical company, and in 2020 he deployed to Kuwait with the 42nd Infantry Division's headquarters.

He also served in the New York Army National Guard's Medical Command in various assignments. His final assignment was servicing as the deputy commander for clinical services.

Media Attachments

New York Army National Guard Col. Martin Ortiz, right, receives the New York State Conspicuous Service Medal from Major General Michel Natali, the assistant adjutant general of New York, during retirement ceremonies at Camp Smith Training Site, near Peekskill, N.Y., Oct. 16, 2022. Ortiz served as an Army musician, infantry office and doctor during a 36-year career. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Pfc. Jean Sanon)

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