Minuteman Minute | The National Guard and the Berlin Wall

As the Berlin Wall fell, the Florida National Guard's 53rd Signal Brigade participated in the REFORGER– or Return of Forces to Germany – exercise in early 1990. Afterward, they presented this piece of the Wall to their adjutant general, Maj. Gen. Robert F. Ensslin.

Hi, I’m Will Roulett, Director of the National Guard Memorial Museum here in D.C., and this is YOUR Minuteman Minute! This piece of the Berlin Wall sits in the middle of our Cold War Era gallery and represents the ideological split that divided the world for half of the 20th Century. It was presented to Major General Robert F. Ensslin, Adjutant General of Florida from 1982 to 1992, by Florida’s 53rd Signal Brigade. The Berlin Wall was built in 1961 and separated East Germany from the Western world until November 1989. Two months later, the 53rd Signal Brigade participated in REFORGER — or Return of Forces to Germany — exercise. REFORGER familiarized Guardsmen with European terrain and deployment procedures. REFORGER leveraged the Total Force, with Guard, Reserve, and Active service members working together. It was also a timely exercise for the Guardsmen who would deploy for the Persian Gulf War later that year. Come see this — and a whole lot more — at the National Guard Memorial Museum. I’m Will Roulett, [Look at watch.] and that’s been your Minuteman Minute, brought to you by the National Guard Educational Foundation.