Nava briefed Lujan on the New Mexico Army and Air National Guard, Youth ChalleNGe Academy, and the Counterdrug Joint Task Force. While discussing the Youth ChalleNGe Academy, Nava explained that the cadre invites past graduates to serve as mentors to current cadets. He cited an example of a graduate from Cycle 2 (the current class is Cycle 34), who was on a “path to destruction” and is now set to become a doctor. “He graduated, joined the military and served two tours in Iraq,” Nava said. “He got out and used his G.I. Bill benefits to earn a degree in Biology and became a teacher. He later decided to go to medical school and is now going to be a pediatrician.” Because of successes like this, Nava said that he hopes to see the program expand class size and possibly open an additional facility in another part of the state. The current facility is located in Roswell. Lujan took notes and asked questions throughout the briefing. He showed a particular interest in the Guard’s counterdrug support program. “This is something that’s very important to me,” Lujan said. “We’re making a big push on treatment, but we also need to go after the guys in suits and ties who are involved, including the flow of money.” Lujan added that counterdrug efforts need to focus on the cyber side of the problem. “A lot of this business is done through the dark web,” he said. After the briefing, Nava took Lujan on a “windshield tour” of the Oñate Military Complex before they visited the Army Aviation Support Facility in Santa Fe. Senior leaders in attendance included Col. Steven Garcia, NMARNG Chief of Staff; Col. John Castillo, 150th Special Operations Wing Commander; Col. Anthony Leal, Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel; Col. Jamison Herrera, Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and 111th Sustainment Brigade Commander; Col. Anthony Rivera, Deputy Chief of Staff for Logistics; Col. Michael Rieske, State Army Aviation Officer; Lt. Col. Mary Laumbach, Secretary to the General Staff; Lt. Col. John Scott, Air Director of Staff; Maj. Raymond Chung, Staff Judge Advocate; Chief Warrant Officer Lawrence Jiron, Command Chief Warrant Officer; Command Chief Master Sgt. Mitchell Brush, NMNG Senior Enlisted Leader; State Command Sgt. Maj. Jerry Garcia; State Command Chief Master Sgt. Brad Chambers; State Programs Director Theresa Martinez; Department of Military Affairs General Counsel Sonya Carrasco-Trujillo; and Mario Tafoya, Deputy Construction & Facilities Management Officer. Congressional Staffer Sonya Lopez accompanied Lujan on his visit.]]>
