“This is an opportunity for our reservists to support a critically important mission to help assist our communities and our interagency partners to help with the vaccination effort and make a positive impact," he said. Balance and strength As more requests for forces come in from FEMA and the states, the Coast Guard is working to maintain a balance of those they can send with the bench strength needed to support future contingencies, as well as the 2021 hurricane season. Wennet sees not just a chance to help the nation at a critical time, but an opportunity to build skills for Reserve members. “The original concept was day-to-day general duty support, but our people have also stepped up to meet emerging needs at these sites. For example, we now have members filling or assisting with ICS roles, including as planning section chiefs in two of the locations,” said Wennet. “FEMA sees Coast Guard members as very adaptive, capable resources who take the initiative to solve problems. This is also providing opportunities for our people to progress with some ICS qualifications and obtain direct interagency experience.” Demand is increasing, and Wennet is hearing positive reports from the field, the incident commanders, the deployed Coast Guard teams, and from FEMA directly. “Morale is very high, people are tied into the mission,” said Wennet. “This is a national effort to support a presidential priority. It’s designed to save lives, and the Coast Guard is a lifesaving organization. Our people are in their element.” � ROLLING WITH THE (VACCINE) ROLLOUT In uniform and out, Coast Guard reservists are making a difference in the response to the pandemic. Senior Chief Petty Officer Lena Boulanger, a reservist in her 27th year of service in the Coast Guard, is the reserve silver badge for Sector Boston. In the civilian world, though, she manages the State of New Hampshire’s vaccination program. Normally, this means things like childhood vaccinations and flu shots, but when the coronavirus pandemic changed the world last year, Boulanger’s work went into overdrive. She said she's been planning for the rush since last spring, at first from home, researching equipment like deep freezers, portable refrigeration units to be used in the field and developing vaccine storage and handling protocols. Then returning to the office in September, she coordinated the vaccine rollout process, trained staff, and with support from the New Hampshire Air National Guard and Army National Guard, she ensured vaccine distribution was a smooth operation. When the state was one of the first to receive its vaccines doses, Boulanger was there to receive it. “I’m in charge of bringing it in one door and pushing it out the other,” said Boulanger. “Making sure no doses are wasted.” Now, she works to push vaccine supply to clinics around the state, which are operating seven days a week, 12 hours a day. “My world is on fire right now,” Boulanger said with laugh. Her easy manner and confident tone come from being part of the NH Division of Public 26 RESERVIST � Issue 1 • 2021 Health for the last 14 years, and she loves her work. “Public health is fun,” said Boulanger. “It’s always a challenge.” Challenge is the right term. Her normal world of work never stopped; the childhood vaccinations and flu shots are still needed alongside the COVID-19 vaccine. As the state’s vaccine accountability coordinator, she’s essentially coordinating two distinct programs with two separate budgets. The senior chief does all this while maintaining availability to her shipmates as part of her silver badge job; it’s been months since she’s taken more than an occasional Saturday off. She said her twin careers in the healthcare industry and the military complement one another. “My Coast Guard career has taught me to be a critical thinker,” said Boulanger, who’s been deployed for contingencies three times in the last decade, “like being a problem solver, coming up with solutions off the cuff— all the things that make you a good leader and a good manager.” She cited her work in ICS as instrumental in both careers; her experience lets her know when things aren’t running by the playbook, and she’s able to offer suggestions, whether she’s supporting a response in or out of uniform. With 1.3 million people in New Hampshire, Boulanger has her work cut out for her, but she wouldn’t want it any other way. “Every day, you have a set course for that day, but your whole world could go in a different direction in 30 minutes,” she said. “I love that.” �
