The Maine

Maine

Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...

 Department of Defense, Veterans, and Emergency Management (DVEM) is a government agency

Government agency

A government or state agency is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions, such as an intelligence agency. There is a notable variety of agency types...

 of Maine. It comprises the two components of the Maine National Guard, the Maine Army National Guard

Maine Army National Guard

The Maine Army National Guard is a component of the United States Army and the United States National Guard. Nationwide, the Army National Guard comprises approximately one half of the US Army's available combat forces and approximately one third of its support organization...

 and the Maine Air National Guard

Maine Air National Guard

The Maine Air National Guard is the air force militia of the U.S. state of Maine. It is, along with the Maine Army National Guard, an element of the Maine National Guard...

, the Bureau of Veterans' Affairs, and the Maine Emergency Management Agency. The Adjutant General

Adjutant general

An Adjutant General is a military chief administrative officer.-Imperial Russia:In Imperial Russia, the General-Adjutant was a Court officer, who was usually an army general. He served as a personal aide to the Tsar and hence was a member of the H. I. M. Retinue...

 of Maine, Major General

Major General

Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...

 John W. ("Bill") Libby, commands the Maine National Guard and serves as the State's Commissioner of Defense, Veterans, and Emergency Management (DVEM).

Maine National Guard

The headquarters for the Maine National Guard is at Camp Keyes in Augusta, Maine

Augusta, Maine

Augusta is the capital of the US state of Maine, county seat of Kennebec County, and center of population for Maine. The city's population was 19,136 at the 2010 census, making it the third-smallest state capital after Montpelier, Vermont and Pierre, South Dakota...

.

Maine Army National Guard

The Maine Army National Guard maintains 29 units in 26 communities across the state.

As of 2006, the Maine Army National Guard

Maine Army National Guard

The Maine Army National Guard is a component of the United States Army and the United States National Guard. Nationwide, the Army National Guard comprises approximately one half of the US Army's available combat forces and approximately one third of its support organization...

 had produced 200 "Flat Daddy

Flat Daddy

A Flat Daddy is a life-sized cardboard cut-out of someone absent from home, the idea being to keep connected to family members during a deployment. Flat Daddies came in fashion after the start of the Iraq War when spouses and children were left alone after soldiers were called up for duty...

" and "Flat Mommy" cutouts for the families of soldiers deployed in Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

 and Afghanistan

Afghanistan

Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...

. The Maine program was started based on information received at a National Guard conference. The state's family-support director noted the enthusiastic response to the program, stating that "If there's something we can do to make it a little easier on the families, then that's our job and our responsibility. It brings them a little bit closer and might help them somewhere down the line."

The only substantial force appears to be B Company, 3rd Battalion, 172nd Infantry Regiment (Mountain), whose headquarters are with the Vermont National Guard

Vermont National Guard

The Vermont National Guard is composed of the Vermont Army National Guard and the Vermont Air National Guard. Green Mountain Boys, despite the inclusion of women in both branches since the mid-twentieth century. Flag of the Green Mountain Boys as their banner...

. Other units include the 136th and 262nd Engineer Companies, the 126th (Bangor) and 488th Military Police Companies, and small detachments of the 126th and 142nd Aviation Regiments, and the 186th Brigade Support Battalion of the 86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (United States)

86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (United States)

The 86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team is a Vermont National Guard light infantry brigade. It was reorganized from an armored brigade into a light infantry brigade as part of the United States Army's transformation for the 21st century...

.

Maine Air National Guard

The Maine Air National Guard

Maine Air National Guard

The Maine Air National Guard is the air force militia of the U.S. state of Maine. It is, along with the Maine Army National Guard, an element of the Maine National Guard...

 consists of three units. The most important unit is the 101st Air Refueling Wing

101st Air Refueling Wing

The United States Air Force's 101st Air Refueling Wing is an Air National Guard aerial refueling unit located at Bangor International Airport, Maine.-Mission:Federal...

, which is based at Bangor International Airport

Bangor International Airport

Bangor International Airport is a joint civil-military public airport located west of the city of Bangor, in Penobscot County, Maine, United States. It is owned and operated by the City of Bangor and was formerly a military installation known as Dow Air Force Base. The airport possesses a single...

 (the former Dow Air Force Base

Dow Air Force Base

-History:Dow Air Force Base began as "Godfrey Field" in 1927, on land owned by local attorney Edward Rawson Godfrey . Commercial flights began at the field in 1931 under Northeast Airlines...

) and operates the KC-135R. Additionally there are the 243rd Engineering and Installation Squadron and 265th Combat Communications Squadron, both based at South Portland, ME.

External links

• Maine Army National Guard
• Maine Air National Guard
• Bibliography of Maine Army National Guard History compiled by the United States Army Center of Military History