DOMESTIC ACTION PROGRAMS BENEFIT GUARD, COMMUNITY

Domestic Action Programs, which are provided by the Missouri National Guard, are definitely beneficial to the community.

The Guard has built ball fields, provided access roads for public schools, commuter parking lots and several other projects that have enhanced the region.

DAPs are defined by a state memorandum to all units in Missouri as "any action involving the use of the government personnel or equipment to support a project that would benefit society or the community.

"The project cannot favor, or appear to favor, a particular group, business or individual, especially one that is political or excludes any other group because of race, creed, color national origin, or sex."

Col. Ken Liescheidt, the battalion commander of the 1140th Engineer Brigade, which has units all over the region, said that the DAPs are good for his troops, too.

"We look for Guard training wherever we can get it," Liescheidt said. "This gives us the opportunity to benefit both the community and at the same time benefit our training program."

The Guardsman get a chance to get out and use some of the equipment that they have been trained to use, and at the same time, do something good for the community.

The program is mainly geared toward schools, cities, municipalities, and state and local government.

There are a number of ways these institutions could get the Guard to help with various construction projects.

"The initial contact should be through the local Guard unit," Liescheidt said. "Then they can make the formal request through state channels."

Local construction companies needn't fear competition from the Guard, either. The organization requesting the Guard's help must first run an announcement in the local newspaper saying that they are about to have the construction done. "The Domestic Action Program has certainly not been set up to compete," Liescheidt said.

The best part of the DAP is that the organization, such as a school, only has to pay for the materials needed for their project. No additional funding is required of the organizations to pay for the Guards labor.

"It's providing a service that they probably couldn't otherwise afford," Liescheidt said.

Sgt. Dennis Carmock, of Company C in Sikeston, said he knows the program works because he was a part of one mission.

For nine drill weekends, Carmock and a crew of about 30 troops spent eight hours a day extending a culvert across a creek so it would be safer for school children.

"The kids had to cross a road that had a lot of traffic," Carmack said. "We built the culvert so the kids could walk around, without getting in the street."

The Guard also constructed an access roadway for the Perryville District School #32.

Troops built a new road 1,300 feet long, said Lt. Craig Gatzemeyer, also of the 1140th Engineer Battalion.

This provided access to school that also made it possible for the students to go around the road safely.

"Most people don't see us doing these kinds of things," Lieschiedt said. "It's hard for them to comprehend.

"We want people to know we're an organization made up of people in the community who want to help the community."