Among its many roles, the Oregon National Guard is responsible for providing assistance to Oregonians in the event of a natural disaster. At its current participation levels, however, the South Coast contingent would be hard pressed to adequately respond.

“The Coos Bay Guard unit needs to double its size to respond to South Coast disasters,” said Maj. Keith Ensley, commander of the National Guard in southern Oregon, in a press release. “We analyzed a typical coastal emergency and set a force requirement for the Coos Bay armory. As it stands, we can only perform two of our seven critical disaster response functions with our existing force of local soldiers.”

If a disaster were to strike along the South Coast, the Coos Bay Armory would be limited in its ability to provide transportation and distribute food, Ensley said.

In an effort to address these concerns, the Guard will spend the first week of April drumming up support for its programs.

Maj. Gen. Raymond F. Rees, Oregon's ranking military official, will pay a visit to Coos Bay on Wed., April 4, to discuss coastal disaster response, homeland defense and the capabilities of the National Guard on the southern coast.

General Rees' visit will be coordinated with a marketing blitz by local Army National Guardsmen. About 25 guardsmen will make their way around Coos Bay and North Bend on Monday and Tuesday, encouraging residents to sign up. Enticements to join include a $20,000 bonus, full tuition for in-state two-year colleges and traditional duty pay.

“We have never seen benefits like this,” Ensley said in the press release. “It is due to the increased importance of the National Guard.”

The Army National Guard needs a variety of critical specialties in Coos County, including digital communication specialists, ground and air controllers, fuel distributors and infantry.

Gen. Rees will be available to the public at the Coos Bay Armory from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. on April 4. For additional information about the National Guard or information about April's events, those interested can call Ensley at (541) 282-4122.