Here's how you know
 **Official websites use .mil** .mil
 **Secure .mil websites use HTTPS** lock () https://


Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 Toggle navigation
            
            
            
            
            National Guard
                        Always Ready Always There
                    National Guard
            
            Search National Guard:
                        Search
                    Search
                        Search National Guard:
                            Search
    Home

    News
    
        Guard News

    Overseas Operations

    State Partnership Program

    News Features

    RSS Feeds

    Press Releases

    Transcripts

    Features
    
        Features by Year

    Posture Statement

    State Partnership Program

    Special Features

    About the Guard
    
        How We Began

    Air National Guard

    Army National Guard    
    
        DEERS Soldier Journey

    Leader Development Program

    History and Heritage

    I am the Guard

    NGB Official March

    Leadership
    
        CNGB

    VCNGB

    SEA

    DANG

    DARNG

    Joint Staff    
    
        J-1

    J-2

    J-3

    J-4

    J-5

    J-6

    J-7

    J-8

    Personal Staff    
    
        Inspector General

    General Counsel

    Public Affairs

    Executive Support Services

    Legislative Liaison

    Special Staff    
    
        National Guard Office of Special Victims' Counsel

    Office of the Provost Marshal

    Office of the Joint Surgeon

    Director of Acquisitions

    Small Business Programs

    Chaplain

    Senior Leader Management Office

    Diversity Equity Inclusion

    Comptroller

    Resources    
        National Defense Strategy Implementation Guidance

    Community Engagement

    FOIA

    Fact Sheets

    Helpful Links

    Image Gallery
    
        News Images

    Graphics

    Historical Paintings

    Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

    Legislative Liaison

    Small Business Programs

    Social Media

    State Websites

    Videos    
    
        Featured Videos

    On Every Front

    2019 Videos

    2020 Videos

    2021 Videos

    Suicide Prevention

    Family Programs

    Environmental

    Trial Defense Service

    Holistic Wellness Challenge

    Contact Us  Home
  News
  Article View
 
 Download
 Details
 Share
 NEWS
 Childhood Experience Prompts Alaska Native to Serve in Guard By Staff Sgt. Kathryn Mazos-Vega,
                Alaska National Guard Public Affairs
 JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska – In a cabin nine miles from his home village, Tech. Sgt. Blassi Shoogukwruk, a C-17 Globemaster III crew chief with the Alaska Air National Guard’s 176th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, took his first ride in a UH-1 Huey helicopter as a 3-year-old. However, for Shoogukwruk and his family, it was no joyride. The helicopter came to rescue the family after a spring flood inundated their cabin. “I was the first one awake, and I saw an empty coffee can floating on the floor by my bed,” he recalled. “After I saw that, I woke everyone else up, and my dad got us out of the cabin.” After learning their boat had a hole in it, Shoogukwruk’s father led everyone to a floating ice sheet to wait for their rescue. Twenty minutes later, the helicopter and crew arrived and transported the family back to White Mountain. The Airman remembers it like it was yesterday. “It was one of my first memories,” he said. That memory inspired Shoogukwruk to walk into an Alaska National Guard recruiting office in February 2005 while taking a break from college at the University of Alaska – Fairbanks. He spoke to an HC-130 rescue pilot who shared what the Air National Guard had to offer. After a rigorous enlistment process, he enlisted as a rescue HC-130P/N Combat King crew chief in February 2006. “Rescue was something I always wanted to be a part of because I wanted to give back,” he said. “The Alaska Air National Guard really sold itself to me that day.” In 2010, he landed his first active, full-time position working with C-17s and has alternated assignments between the two airframes ever since. Throughout his career, he has gained experience in maintenance operations, airlift, cargo and rescue operations. Shoogukwruk comes from a tradition of military service, with both grandfathers serving with the Alaska Territorial Guard and his mother serving as one of the first female Army Guardsmen in Alaska villages. He also has uncles who served in the Alaska Army National Guard, Navy and Marine Corps. However, he is the first in his family to serve in the Air Force. The pride in his family’s military service came easily, but when it came to accepting his heritage, the Siberian Yupik, Inupiaq, and Athabascan Native said it hasn’t always been easy. As a child growing up in a small Alaskan village, he became well aware of what previous generations of Native Americans endured in their history. Shoogukwruk’s parents grew up in a generation of Native Americans who were punished for speaking their language in school, which caused them to struggle with their Alaska Native identities. He said his parents’ experiences played a part in shaping his view of himself. “At first, when you walk into a room, you say to yourself, ‘Oh no, they’re going to see that I’m Native and maybe they won’t like me because of it,’” he said. “But going through college and learning that I am who I am because I was meant to be has helped.” It was while attending a college with mostly Native American students for a year that Shoogukwruk fully embraced his identity. “Being Alaska Native and living in this land brings me huge amounts of pride,” he said. “My mom always told us the people we came from are super strong people, so just knowing where I came from reaffirms my pride in my heritage.” His connection to his Alaska Native heritage continues to play an important role in his military career. When remnants of Typhoon Merbok hit Western Alaska villages in September, Shoogukwruk knew it was his turn to serve his community. After volunteering to go on state active duty, he was assigned to Task Force Nome, which was responsible for initial clean-up, making emergency repairs and assisting communities with damage assessments in storm-affected communities across Western Alaska. He spent seven days in Golovin, a community of people he grew up with, just 15 miles from his home village. “When the storms happened, they literally and figuratively hit home,” he said. “Just being able to go back, give back to a place where I grew up and show representation was a huge honor for me.” November is National Native American Heritage month, which celebrates the history and traditions of Native American people and their tribes. A significant part of Native American history for Alaska includes the service of the Alaska Territorial Guard, where thousands of Alaska Natives from more than 100 communities served during World War II as a defense against potential Japanese invasion along the 6,640-mile Alaskan coastline. Today, Shoogukwruk continues the story of proud Alaska Native service, just like his mother, grandfathers and other Alaska National Guardsmen before him. “With a lot of us Native people that serve, we’re not just serving our country. This is our home,” he said. “I’m not just serving my country, I’m serving my home, and I’m defending my home.”
 SHARE
 PRINT
 Native Americans in the National Guard talk about what Native American Heritage Month means to them.
 Alaska National Guard
 Native American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage month
 
 Puerto Rico Air National Guard Trains at Red Flag-Alaska
 By 156th Wing
  Alaska Guard Soldiers Honored Before Middle East Deployment
 By Balinda ONeal,
  Capt. David Bedard: At home in the service, serving at home
 By Alaska National Guard
  More
 Pennsylvania Army Guardsmen Complete Combat Lifesaver Course Guard News • 1 hour ago
 38th Infantry Division Soldiers Conduct Warfighter Exercise Guard News • 8 hours ago
 Puerto Rico Air National Guard Trains at Red Flag-Alaska Guard News • 9 hours ago
 Air National Guard Conducts Sentry Savannah Exercise Guard News • yesterday
 Hawaii Air National Guard Hosts Sentry Aloha Joint Exercise Guard News • yesterday
 2024 (196)  2023 (427)  2022 (526)  2021 (697)  2020 (936)  2019 (387)  2018 (323)  2017 (346)  2016 (245)  2015 (356)  2014 (399)  2013 (469)  2012 (556)  2011 (533)  2010 (1071)  2009 (357)  2008 (638)  2007 (295)  2006 (188)
 Home
 Site Map
 Privacy & Security Policy
 Link Disclaimer
 Web Policy
 DOD Information Quality
 DOD Open GovernmentFOIA
 No FEAR Act
 Accessibility/Section 508
 Contact Us
 Army Guard Careers
 Air Guard Careers
 USA.gov
                    
Staying Connected
    XYouTubeFlickrFacebookInstagram
                 
                
                

Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil