Retirement of Major General Daryl Bohac

Floor Speech

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Mr. BACON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Major General Daryl Bohac, the Adjutant General of the Nebraska National Guard, on the occasion of his retirement after serving in this position since July of 2013 and as an Air Force officer for 35 years. As the Adjutant General, he is the senior military officer for the more than 4,500 Army and Air National Guard personnel serving in the state of Nebraska and during his tenure, the Nebraska National Guard deployed over 1,300 Soldiers and over 2,000 Airmen for worldwide combat and peacekeeping missions.

General Bohac is a visionary leader who successfully garnered more than $45 million to modernize and enhance the National Guard in Nebraska to meet and sustain future requirements by constructing a new vehicle maintenance facility in North Platte, Nebraska, a new multi- mission Readiness Center in Bellevue, Nebraska, and new barracks in Mead, Nebraska.

General Bohac and the Nebraska National Guard's disaster response capabilities were tested most notably when a state of emergency was declared following a ``bomb cyclone'' that hit the state in March of 2019, causing severe blizzard conditions in the western panhandle with extreme thunderstorms and historic flooding in the east. More than 450 Nebraska National Guard Soldiers and Airmen executed 113 flood-related missions, the most significant disaster response operation in state history. In the wake of the 2019 historic floods, he successfully advocated for more than $43 million in funding to rapidly reconstruct the decimated facilities at Camp Ashland in record time, while also rebuilding the levee to be more robust and resilient to future floods.

On the heels of this historic disaster, the Nebraska National Guard was called upon to assist with the COVID-19 pandemic and response. The National Guard partnered with the University of Nebraska Medical Center in providing Camp Ashland facilities as an initial housing location for 57 Americans evacuated from Wuhan, China. Further, Major General Bohac worked with the Governor, the Department of Health and Human Services, and other state agencies to set up a State Emergency Operations Center to coordinate and manage COVID-19 emergency actions in Nebraska, directing Soldiers, Airmen, and Emergency Management civilians in response planning, mobile testing teams, personal protective equipment distribution, food bank support, and housing accommodations.

I thank General Bohac for his many years of sacrifice and service to our Nation and the state of Nebraska. We owe him a debt of gratitude we can never repay for his impactful leadership and achievements that will be felt for many future generations.

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