While there are still several hundred Wisconsin National Guard troops deployed overseas, most are back home and using the lessons of those tours to aid residents of the state. Captain Joe Torvato says that it is essential to remember that the Guard serves in two primary capacities.
Since the onset of the pandemic in March, Wisconsin National Guard troops have helped out as poll workers and have administered COVID-19 tests across the state, including in Sturgeon Bay, which provided results for Door and Kewaunee Counties. They have been brought in to help stop civil unrest in several of the state’s largest cities. Torvato says that the Guard’s role in Iraq and Afghanistan, including support tasks like logistics and goodwill gestures such as building schools and other infrastructure, have made it more flexible on the homefront.
*Photo courtesy of the Wisconsin Department of Military Affairs website.