RESERVIST MAGAZINE AROUND THE RESERVE U.S. Army Reserve Spc. Rick Fechter, a forklift operator assigned to Task Force McCoy, U.S. Coast Guard Lt.j.g. Mackenzie Hannon, demobilization unit leader assigned to Task Force McCoy, Gina Salazar, volunteer coordinator for Save Our Allies, and Scott Neil from American Family Insurance, pose for a photo after loading excess donations onto a truck at Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, Jan. 31, 2021. Nearing the end of Operation Allies Welcome, Task Force McCoy is giving excess donations to the local community. Photo by U.S. Army Sgt. Robert P. Wormley III, 50th Public Affairs Detachment Reservists assist largest resettlement mission in U.S. By Lt. Nicholas Sach, Operation Allies Welcome In 2021, the Coast Guard had the unique opportunity to support the monumental humanitarian mission of safely relocating over 84,000 Afghani evacuees into communities across the U.S. On Aug. 29, 2021 the Department of Homeland Security was tasked with the coordination of processing, supporting, sheltering, and caring for our Afghan allies as well as their families as they resettled in the United States. This effort was dubbed “Operation Allies Welcome.” With the Afghan allies' safety and livelihood as a priority, DHS established the United Coordination Group and undertook one of the largest resettlement missions in our Nation’s history. DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas designated FEMA Region 9 Administrator Bob Fenton as the senior response official to lead the mission. Fenton had over 25 years of experience, and had responded to more than 100 presidentially-declared disasters, including 9/11, the Super- Typhoon Pongsona in Guam, and Hurricane Katrina. From Afghanistan, evacuees traveled to overseas staging 8 RESERVIST � Issue 1 • 2022 locations, called “lily pads.” There, Afghan evacuees would undergo the multi-layered and rigorous screening and vetting process before onward travel to the U.S. Once in the U.S., guests traveled to one of eight safe havens established at military bases, where they would live while awaiting permanent resettlement in a U.S. community. At the safe havens, more than a dozen government agencies and many nongovernmental organizations worked to meet the needs of guests, including clothing, health care, and shelter. DHS contributed staffing and resources from each of its components. To ensure peak personnel efficiency, the Coast Guard implemented its support in waves. Wave 1 through Wave 3B of the Coast Guard’s OAW mission consisted of mostly active duty and civilian personnel. Each of these waves lasted only weeks each, but all had a significant impact and were key to establishing the framework for long-term mission success. Wave 4 was the first comprising solely reservists. David Teska, a DHS employee and retired Coast Guard
