Serving through the season: Master Sgt. Greg Curtis

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Dan Heaton
  • Arizona National Guard Public Affairs
YUMA, Ariz. (AFPN) --  Master Sgt. Greg Curtis may be serving in America's Southwest desert this holiday season, but his plans for the Christmas weekend still included some time on the ice.

As the first sergeant for Task Force Yuma, a component of Operation Jump Start, Sergeant Curtis organized a Morale, Welfare and Recreation trip for National Guard Airmen and Soldiers to attend a Phoenix Coyotes NHL hockey game over the Christmas weekend. The visit to the game included an opportunity for the servicemembers to be recognized on the ice before the game.

"I've been in the military for a while, so I understand being away from home for the holiday," said Sergeant Curtis. "Now, I'm looking out for some of the people who are maybe experiencing this for the first time."

Sergeant Curtis is on a four-month deployment to TF Yuma. When not deployed, he is the first sergeant for the Ohio Air National Guard's 121st Air Refueling Wing at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base. When not serving with the Air National Guard, Curtis is a letter carrier for the U.S. Postal Service in his hometown of Columbus, Ohio.

Sergeant Curtis said his wife, Ivy Nicole, and daughters, Channelle, 19, and Nakeisha, 17, are supportive of his service in the Air National Guard, including a past deployment to Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Sergeant Curtis joined the U.S. Army shortly after graduating from Marian Franklin High School in Columbus in 1986. He served four years on active duty and shortly thereafter joined the Ohio Air National Guard. He said his experience of having served in the Army has been an important asset in his current deployment. More than three-quarters of the enlisted personnel in TF Yuma are Soldiers in the Army National Guard.

"I've been deployed to Iraq and to other places, but this is my first deployment state-side," Curtis said. "To me, this one is different from other deployments. This is right here in our own backyard."

In May 2006, President George W. Bush announced Operation Jump Start, a two-year mission for the National Guard to work in support of the U.S. Border Patrol to enhance security along the nation's southern border. About 6,000 National Guard Airmen and Soldiers are on duty along the U.S.-Mexico Border this holiday season.

"I know my family is at home and sure I miss them," Curtis said. "This year, I have a duty to look out for our junior Airmen and Soldiers here in the Yuma area and that's what I'll do."

Comment on this story (comments may be published on Air Force Link)

Click here to view the comments/letters page