News from New York State Division of Military & Naval Affairs

For more information contact: : Mr. Eric Durr, (518)786-4581 or (cell) (518) 429-5186

National Guard Officers Participate in Professional Development Day

Media Advisory

BOULTON LANDING , NY (04/23/2008; 0800)(readMedia)-- Officers of the New York Army and Air National Guard will discuss homeland security issues, developments in the Army and Air Force, and the future of New York’s Military Forces, during the annual Adjutant’s General Professional Development Day at the Sagamore Resort Hotel on Saturday, April 26. Members of the media are invited to visit.

WHO: Approximately 200 officers of the New York Army and Air National Guard, along with officers of the New York Naval Militia and the New York Guard, the state’s volunteer defense forces and distinguished speakers from the state and federal government.

WHAT: The Adjutant General’s Professional Development Day

WHEN: Best Media opportunities from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 26. Posting of the Colors at 8 a.m.

WHERE: The Sagamore Resort Hotel, Bolton Landing, NY.

BACKGROUND:

Coverage Opportunities:

8 a.m. : Posting of the Colors. Opening remarks.

10:30 to 11:45 a.m. : Panel Discussion on Homeland Defense and the National Guard’s role in it featuring Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense, Dr. Steven Bucci, Brig. Gen. David F. Sheppard, the director of the New York State Office of Homeland Security, State Emergency Management Office Director John Gibb, and Major General Joseph Taluto, the Adjutant General.

11:45 a.m.- 1 p.m.: Interview opportunities with Major General Taluto, the commander of the New York National Guard and other National Guard officers.

All Day: Displays from professional organizations and equipment vendors.

The Annual TAG Professional Development Day provides an opportunity for the officers of New York’s Military Forces to learn more about their chosen part-time profession of arms. Officers are continually urged to keep abreast of the latest developments in doctrine, technology, and tactics, and this educational event brings experts in their fields together with New York’s officer corps.

Speakers from Washington, D. C. will include Lt. Gen. Stephen Speakers, the officer responsible for planning for the Army’s future and his Air Force counterpart, Lt. Gen. Charles Stenner, and Deputy Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense, Dr. Steven Bucci, a native of Dobbs Ferry, New York.

Mr. John Gibb, the director of the State Emergency Management Office and Brig. Gen. David Sheppard, the director of the New York State Office of Homeland Security, will be part of a panel discussion on New York’s homeland security operations, while Deputy Secretary for Public Safety Michael Balboni will deliver the keynote address during the annual Military Association of New York Dinner that evening.

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