The Guard will activate the 919th Military Police Company, part of the 226th Military Police Battalion, at the Farmington Armory at 11 a.m. Sunday. The new company will be the second military police company in the state controlled by the battalion, also headquartered in Farmington. The other company, the 126th Military Police Company, is based in Albuquerque.
The public may attend the ceremony, held in the armory's gym, Maj. Xavier Miller said.
The Guard in September was approved to recruit 170 people for the company. It would locate 84 of those guardsmen in Farmington.
The company would have detachments in Albuquerque and Grants of 43 guardsmen each, Miller said.
Three full-time staffers would command guardsmen in Farmington. One full-time staffer would lead the Albuquerque detachment and another full-time staffer would command in Grants.
A dozen full-time staffers already command the battalion and will recruit guardsmen for the company in Farmington.
Once the new company is established, guardsmen could be deployed "wherever they're needed," Miller said. If more troops are needed in Afghanistan, guardsmen from the military police company could be deployed, or they could be sent to aid law enforcement in New Mexico and throughout the nation during disasters such as wildfires.
"I'm not saying we would
The Guard will recruit men and women from the Four Corners area between the ages of 17 and 35 for the company, Master Sgt. Louie Estrada said. People must have a high school diploma or they can apply after getting their GED.
A few people each day visit the Guard's recruiting office at 4301 Largo Street, Estrada said.
Prospective guardsmen must pass a test and take a physical in Albuquerque, though only one in every 20 people Guard recruiters talk to are enlisted, Estrada said.
"The qualifications are set a little bit higher than normal, than years past," Estrada said.
Guardsmen spend eight years in the Guard, training one weekend every month and two weeks every summer for six years, Estrada said. No training is done during a guardsman's final two years.
Guardsmen can be deployed overseas and to emergencies throughout the nation during the eight years.
Recruits also must do an additional 10 weeks of basic training and military police recruits must go to school for another 12 weeks, Estrada said.
They can earn money for college or receive full tuition to attend a New Mexico state college.
"It's an opportunity for young men and women to make a strong foundation for their future," Estrada said.
The military police battalion consists of 59 guardsmen who work in Farmington. The battalion is authorized to enlist another 14 guardsmen.
Not every guardsman in the military police battalion, which is authorized for 413 guardsmen throughout the state, is a military police officer. Cooks, communications and information technology workers, medics, mechanics and other positions join the ranks.
The Guard also is planning a more than $12 million addition to the Farmington Armory it hopes will be funded by state and federal dollars, Miller said.
"The (military police company) will be activated here," Miller said. "They'll work here and they'll grow here."
Steve Lynn:
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