(DES MOINES) - Governor Terry E. Branstad and Lt. Governor Kim Reynolds are pleased to honor six police officers with the 2012 Sullivan Brothers' Award of Valor.  Every day men and women in uniform quietly serve, sacrificing their safety to keep Iowa communities secure.  It is only appropriate the state take time to honor the officers and firefighters who go above and beyond the call of duty.  This year, Governor Branstad will honor professionals who risked their own personal safety to rescue passengers from the burning wreckage of a car crash.

WHAT:                  Sullivan Brothers' Award of Valor Presentation

WHEN:                  Thursday, November 8, 2012

3:00 PM

WHERE:                State Capitol Rotunda

Des Moines, Iowa

WHO:                    Award Recipients: Iowa Peace Officers

Governor Terry E. Branstad

Lt. Governor Kim Reynolds

Commissioner K. Brian London, Department of Public Safety

Established in 1977, the Sullivan Brothers' Award of Valor is awarded to peace officers and firefighters who, while serving in an official capacity, distinguished themselves by the performance of an heroic act in excess of normal demands of service where the person was fully aware of the threat to his/her personal safety.

To learn more about the heroic acts performed by this year's recipients, see below/visit this link: http://www.dps.state.ia.us/commis/pib/Awards/valor.shtml

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On August 28, 2011, Sergeant Michael McTaggart, Officers Colin Boone, Aaron Cawthorne, Jeremy Sprague and Robin Swank; along with Reserve Officer John Carter, responded to a crash at the intersection of Southeast 14^th and Hartford streets.

Upon their arrival, officers observed a Ford Explorer had turned on its side and was fully ablaze.  The officers immediately assessed and secured the scene and began to take action to rescue the occupants of the vehicle.

Working in close proximity to the fire and knowing the vehicle could explode at any moment, the officers broke out a back window of the vehicle to rescue one of the victims.  Meanwhile, other officers climbed on top of the vehicle to pull the second victim out a side window.  Still others used fire extinguishers in an attempted to squelch the fire, repeatedly returning to fight the fire after retrieving additional extinguishers from the patrol cars on the scene.

After moving both victims clear of the intense flames, the officers continued to render aid until fire medics arrived on the scene.  Without their brave efforts, the two victims who were rescued could have sustained significant injuries or been fatally injured.  Unfortunately, one young woman perished in this incident.

The driver of the other vehicle involved in the collision was subsequently convicted of Vehicular Homicide and sentenced to 25 years in prison.  In addition, he was convicted of four counts of Serious Injury by a Motor Vehicle and sentenced to five years for each count.

During the intense and dangerous incident, each officer's daring efforts contributed to freeing the victims from the blazing vehicle.  Without regard for their personal safety, each officer put themselves in harm's way and worked with each other as a team.

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SPRINGFIELD, IL (11/06/2012)(readMedia)-- The former director of the Illinois State Military Museum will assist the New Jersey National Guard Museum recover and preserve its artifacts affected by Hurricane Sandy and the subsequent, widespread flooding.

Lt. Col. Mark Whitlock of Springfield said the New Jersey National Guard Museum's curator was looking for someone with experience assessing the restoration needs based on an artifact's condition to recover and stabilize the artifacts.

"I did this after hurricane Katrina in 2005," said Whitlock, who serves as the Illinois National Guard Command Historian. "I took a team that included a couple of artifacts experts and a forensics expert specializing in weapons to Jackson Barracks Military Museum in New Orleans to recover artifacts."

Whitlock was the director of the Illinois State Military Museum from 1995 to 2011 before serving a year with the U.S. Army Center of Military History in Washington, D.C. He has also served on the National Guard Bureau museum advisory council for the past 10 years.

The New Jersey National Guard Museum boasts the nation's largest collection of New Jersey related Civil War research material. Whitlock said he expects to be in New Jersey for just over a week and concentrate on the preservation of the New Jersey National Guard Museum's collection of weapons, uniforms, Civil War flags and other archival materials.

"Without assistance from museum specialists from other states, the New Jersey National Guard stands to lose its history," said Whitlock.

Guardsmen and Reservists Encouraged to Nominate Supportive Employers for Nation's Top Honor

ARLINGTON, VA. (11/01/2012)(readMedia)-- Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR), a Department of Defense agency, is now accepting nominations for the 2013 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award. The Freedom Award is the Department of Defense's highest award presented to civilian employers for support of their employees serving in the National Guard and Reserve. Nominations may be submitted by Guardsmen, Reservists, or family members acting on their behalf, at www.FreedomAward.mil through January 21, 2013.

Nearly one million Americans serve in the Guard and Reserve, making up almost one-half of the nation's total military. For more than 10 years, these Citizen Warriors have responded to unprecedented national security demands and humanitarian missions spanning the globe. The civilian employers of Guardsmen and Reservists have shared in their service to our nation by standing firmly behind employees, providing essential support and greater peace of mind.

"Employers of every size and industry continue to go to extraordinary lengths to demonstrate their unwavering commitment to employees serving in the Guard and Reserve," said James G. Rebholz, National Chair, Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve. "I urge all Guard and Reserve Service members who have benefited from their employer's support to nominate that employer for this most prestigious award. A Freedom Award nomination allows service members to acknowledge and thank their employer for the essential role they play in supporting their military career and in our nation's defense."

Each year, up to 15 of the nation's most supportive employers are selected as recipients and honored at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. Past Freedom Award recipients supportive measures have included arranging childcare services for deployed employees, sponsoring trips to visit injured employees, and working longer hours to cover the shifts of employees at military training.

About ESGR and the Freedom Award:

The Freedom Award was instituted in 1996 under the auspices of ESGR to recognize exceptional support from the employer community. In the years since, 175 employers have been honored with the award. Established as a DoD agency 40 years ago, ESGR develops and maintains employer support for Guard and Reserve service. ESGR advocates relevant initiatives, recognizes outstanding support, increases awareness of applicable laws, and resolves conflict between service members and employers. Paramount to ESGR's mission is encouraging employment of Guardsmen and Reservists who bring integrity, global perspective and proven leadership to the civilian workforce.

SPRINGFIELD, IL (10/31/2012)(readMedia)-- Approximately 20 Illinois Army National Guard Soldiers who served in Afghanistan will return to Illinois this week. The homecoming ceremony for the Bilateral Embedded Staff Team (BEST) A9 will be Nov. 1 at 9 a.m. Camp Lincoln, 1301 N. MacArthur Blvd. in Springfield.

The BEST Soldiers were mobilized in January. They trained for a brief time at Camp Atterbury, Ind., before deploying to Poland for approximately two months to train with the Polish Land Forces 6th Airborne Brigade. The unique mission allowed Illinois Army National Guard Soldiers to train and deploy side-by-side with their Polish counterparts. Following the training, the Soldiers deployed to Afghanistan for a six-month mobilization. The Soldiers are from various parts of Illinois and were selected for the mission based on their training and skills.

The team was part of Task Force White Eagle XI, which included more than 3,000 Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines from the U.S., Poland and Ukraine. The task force kept the roads between Kabul and Kandahar safe and reduced the insurgent influence in the area.

Task Force White Eagle had the highest rate of found and cleared roadside bombs in the region, greatly reducing the number of innocent civilians, Afghan National Security Forces and Coalition Forces who were injured or killed. The task force also worked in regions of the country that were previously neglected and helped build a new security presence. Additionally, the servicemembers worked with the Internal Security Assistance Force to coordinate and execute multiple raids with Afghanistan commanders that targeted the Taliban in Ghazni Province. The raids captured and removed a majority of the Taliban commanders and sub-commanders in the region. The task force also found and removed more than 30,000 kilograms of explosive materials from the area and the team found more than $21.3 million of lost and unaccounted for property.

BEST A9 was awarded 13 Bronze Star Medals, five Army Commendation Medals, two Combat Infantry Badges and three Combat Action Badges. They also received four Polish Army Medals-Silver and five Polish Army Medals-Bronze.