September 15, 2006 - Pvt. 1st Class Jonathan P. Sielaff, of Skidmore, was promoted to the rank of specialist in the Missouri Army National Guard on Sept. 15, 2006, during a drill formation at the National Guard armory.

Sielaff has served in the Guard for two years as a fire support specialist for the Headquarters and Headquarters Service Battery of the 1st Battalion 129th Field Artillery located in Maryville.

Sielaff is a graduate of Nodaway Holt High School.

September 15, 2006 - Spc. Nathan Drummond, of Tarkio, was promoted to the rank of sergeant in the Missouri Army National Guard on Sept. 15, 2006 during a drill formation at the National Guard armory.

Drummond has served in the National Guard for over three years and is a trained combat medic for the Headquarters and Headquarters Service Battery of the 1st Battalion 129th Field Artillery located in Maryville.

Drummond is a 1998 graduate of West Nodaway High School and is the son of Beverly McGinness and Donnie Drummond.  He is employed by Heartland Builders.

September 15, 2006 - Pvt. 1st Class Clay A. Bevering, of Mound City, was promoted to the rank of specialist in the Missouri Army National Guard on Sept. 15, 2006, during a drill formation at the National Guard armory.

Bevering has served in the Guard for two and a half years.  He is a field artillery data system specialist for the Headquarters and Headquarters Service Battery of the 1st Battalion of the 129th Field Artillery located in Maryville.

Bevering is a 2005 graduate of Mound City High School. He is the son of Jim Bevering.

September 20, 2006 - Maj. John E. Parker, of Smithville, was recently promoted to Lieutenant Colonel in the Missouri Army National Guard.  Parker has served as the 129th Field Artillery Battalion Commander since May of 2006.

Parker stated that the position of the Battalion Commander has been everything he thought it would be.  "I am to lead the battalion and make sure everyone is successful, and I look forward to accomplishing that," he stated.  "It is an honor to reach the rank of Lieutenant Colonel."

Twenty years ago Parker joined the Army National Guard, and he never dreamed of reaching this rank.  "I am proud to still be a part of the U.S. Army National Guard," Parker stated.

"My first battery commander was (Ret.) Lt. Col. Mark Parks and the first sergeant was (Ret.) Jack Totty," said Parker, "Those two men taught me so much while I was at Delta Battery."  Battery D of the 1st Battalion of the 129th Field Artillery located in Independence was Parkers first home unit.  He stated that many other individuals have been instrumental in the success of his military and civilian careers including his first principal at Leavenworth High School, Jim VanMaanen.

Parker's roots in the military run deep with his father and uncles' military service during Vietnam and his wife's grandfather's service in WWII.  His father-in-law also served in the Army National Guard for several years.  "I think having so many veterans in my family was part of the reason I joined in the first place and is certainly the reason I have stayed in for twenty years," stated Parker.

Parker has seen incredible support from his family, friends, co-workers and his military family.  "It meant a lot to me to see both my Army and civilian bosses at the promotion ceremony.

August 16, 2006 - Dino J. Galanakis was promoted to Sergeant 1st Class in the Missouri Army National Guard on July 1 and was pinned on July 15 during a drill formation at the National Guard Armory.

"Sgt. 1st Class Galanakis is on of the young leaders coming up through the ranks," stated Cpt. Shannon Holaday, Battalion Administrative Officer.  Holaday stated that Galanakis has a remarkable dedication towards the Soldiers and their families.  "He is focused on two things: the accomplishment of the mission and the welfare of his Soldiers and their families.  These goals are what he strives for and accomplishes daily," stated Holaday.

Galanakis has served in the Guard for over eleven years and recently transferred to the Headquarters and Headquarters Service Battery located in Maryville from Battery A located in Albany, both of the 1st Battalion 129th Field Artillery.  He is serving as the Battalion Ammunition Sergeant and on July 1 filled a full time position as the Maryville unit's Readiness Non Commissioned Officer.

Galanakis is a graduate of Maryville High School and is the son of John D. Galanakis, of Greenfield, Iowa, and Jennifer Schieber, of Maryville.  He and his wife, Kera, reside in Grant City with their two children, Kennedy Marie and John Dino.

July 26, 2006 - Spc. Aaron R. Brown was promoted to sergeant in the Missouri Army National Guard on July 15, 2006, at the National Guard Armory in Albany.

Brown has served in Battery A of the 1^st Battalion 129^th Field Artillery for three years and holds a military occupation specialty in fire direction control. 

He is a 2004 graduate of Maryville High School and is the son of Dan Brown and Macinda Pangle.  Brown resides in Maryville.

May 26, 2006 - Pvt. 1st Class Joshua M. Schieber, of Maryville, was promoted to Specialist in the Missouri Army National Guard on May 6, 2006 during a drill formation at the Armory in Maryville. Schieber has served in the Guard for two years completing both basic combat training and advanced individual training.

Currently, Schieber is a healthcare specialist/combat medic for the Headquarters and Headquarters Service Battery of the 1st Battalion 129th Field Artillery located in Maryville.

He is a sophomore at Northwest Missouri State University and is the son of Mark and Amy Schieber, also of Maryville.