1-140th Boss Lift builds relationship with employers
Soldiers give their civilian employers a look inside Cal Guard service
Story and photos by Cpl. Emma Anderson
40th Combat Aviation Brigade Public Affairs
Dec. 14, 2022
LOS ALAMITOS, Calif. – Employers of Soldiers assigned to Cal Guard’s 1st Assault Helicopter Battalion, 140th Aviation Regiment, at Joint Forces Training Base, Los Alamitos, received the opportunity to take a flight, Dec. 9, during a Boss Lift outreach event held by the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR).
The event showed appreciation for Soldiers' civilian employers while also giving them a look at what their employees do when completing military obligations.
“I have a lot of respect for the service,” said Erann Lincoln, senior manager of flight operations for
Boeing and supervisor of two Soldiers from the 1-140th Aviation Regiment. “I like to see as much as I can about what service members do, so I can understand and support them as much as I can.”
Throughout the event employers had the opportunity to talk to each other, listen to a presentation as to why they are so imperative in the success of military missions, and then see first-hand what their Soldiers do by taking an open-door flight in one of the battalion's UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters.
Brian Napoli, director of operations for Amwest Ambulance in Los Angeles, said the event gave him a better understanding of what his Soldier does while away.
“We’re able to see what our Soldiers are going through and what they do,” said Napoli. “It gives me a better understanding of how we’re helping the communities by supporting this partnership with our Soldier.”
U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Christopher Castillo who works directly under Napoli as a paramedic for Amwest Ambulance saw this event as an opportunity to show him appreciation.
“When we have to be absent for training or a deployment, our employer has to hold on to that job because it’s federally protected, even when it’s more difficult for them," Castillo said. "Events like this allow us as an employee to give back to our employer as a token of appreciation.”
2nd Lt. Austin Rompel, an aviation officer with the 1-140th Headquarters and Headquarters Company, also confirmed the Boss Lift cultivated a positive environment for building relationships between Soldiers and their employers.
“The whole goal of the ESGR is to smooth over the employer and Guard relationships,” he said. “By doing events like this, it really helps achieve this goal. I didn’t see a single employer come out of that aircraft that didn’t have a smile on their face. I was talking to several individuals who said they were able to live out their childhood dream of flying in an Army aircraft.”
Shelly Gardner, a volunteer with ESGR for over six years said, “It’s important for employers to see what their employees are doing when they have to go to drill or be taken away from their civilian job for training.”
Individuals who work hand-in-hand with the Army National Guard such as Drasko Bogdanovic, a member of the National Park Service, also agreed this event made a positive impact on interpersonal relationships.
Bogdanovic said, “This creates a positive environment between employers and employees because individuals of every stage of whatever business they come from get to see what their service members do.”
Civilian employers are welcomed and recognized during the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserves Boss Lift event, Dec. 9, at Joint Forces Training Base, Los Alamitos. The program gave employers an opportunity to spend time with their employees who also serve in the California National Guard and learn about the Soldiers' aviation-related missions.
Civilian employers are welcomed and recognized during the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserves Boss Lift event, Dec. 9, at Joint Forces Training Base, Los Alamitos. The program gave employers an opportunity to spend time with their employees who also serve in the California National Guard and learn about the Soldiers' aviation-related missions.
Brian Napoli, director of operations for Amwest Ambulance in Los Angeles, talks with U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Christopher Castillo, who works for Napoli as a civilian paramedic in addition to his military service.
Brian Napoli, director of operations for Amwest Ambulance in Los Angeles, talks with U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Christopher Castillo, who works for Napoli as a civilian paramedic in addition to his military service.
A Soldier escorts civilian employers to a Black Hawk helicopter, Dec. 9, at Los Alamitos Army Airfield.
A Soldier escorts civilian employers to a Black Hawk helicopter, Dec. 9, at Los Alamitos Army Airfield.
Civilian employers are escorted onto the flightline at Los Alamitos Army Airfield on Joint Forces Training Base, Los Alamitos, Dec. 9, for an orientation flight in a Black Hawk helicopter and exposure to the work that full-time and part-time Soldiers in Cal Guard's 1st Assault Helicopter Battalion train for on a regular basis.
Civilian employers are escorted onto the flightline at Los Alamitos Army Airfield on Joint Forces Training Base, Los Alamitos, Dec. 9, for an orientation flight in a Black Hawk helicopter and exposure to the work that full-time and part-time Soldiers in Cal Guard's 1st Assault Helicopter Battalion train for on a regular basis.
A crew chief ensures passengers are safely buckled into their seats inside a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter before a flight.
A crew chief ensures passengers are safely buckled into their seats inside a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter before a flight.
A U.S. Army UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter assigned to Cal Guard's 1st Assault Helicopter Battalion, 140th Aviation Regiment, is in flight over Southern California, Dec. 9, during a Boss Lift held in conjunction with California's Employer Support of the Guard and Reserves program.
A U.S. Army UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter assigned to Cal Guard's 1st Assault Helicopter Battalion, 140th Aviation Regiment, is in flight over Southern California, Dec. 9, during a Boss Lift held in conjunction with California's Employer Support of the Guard and Reserves program.
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