I watched out a small window as the F-15 Eagle flew up behind the KC-135 Stratotanker and gently nuzzled up to a flying boom.

Beside me in the small, cold faring under the rear fuselage of the tanker, Tech Sgt. Marty Martin, 141st Air Refueling Wing (ARW), Washington Air National Guard (WANG), made sure the boom found and connected with the fighter's fuel receptacle.

At 35,000 feet and 315 knots over southern Oregon, there was no room for error.

"It's what we do, and we do it well," Martin said after the tanker touched down at Spokane International Airport.  "We are vital to the success of the nation's global mission." The 141st ARW is based at Fairchild Air Force Base in Spokane.

Another part of the WANG's mission is to thank local employers who understand and support the WANG's mission.

"We greatly appreciate what you do for us," Col. Rich Kelly, the wing commander, said.  "You are what make our mission possible."

To that end, the 141st ARW hosted Boss Lift - 2011 on June 4. Twenty-eight employers from the Spokane area accepted the wing's invitation to enjoy the Guard's hospitality.

"It's our opportunity to give back to employers and for all they do," said Ken Isaak, the area chair for Employer Support of The Guard and Reserve (ESGR). "We work to strengthen the ties between the Guard/Reserves and their employers."

A Department of Defense agency, the ESGR (www.esgr.mil) works to promote a culture in which all American employers support and value the military service of their employees. The organization recognizes the outstanding support of employers, increases awareness of the law and helps to resolve conflicts through mediation.

Before going on the refueling flight, employers got a firsthand look at the WANG's Homeland Response Force (HRF).

More than 560 Army and Air Force Guardsmen train to successfully confront any chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear or high yield explosive (CBNRE) attack.

"We provide extraction, security, search and extraction, medical and decontamination in the event of a natural or man-made disaster," Master Sgt. Joseph Fields, a security police officer, explained.

Vital to the HRF's mission is the ability to deploy mobile hospitals designed to deal with emergency situations.

"We are basically a hospital in a box," Dr. (Lt. Col.) Jeff Maple said as he stood in the middle of a warehouse filled with medical supplies.

Washington, Kansas and Pennsylvania are the only three states that have three sets apiece of these mobile hospitals.

"We can load our medical supplies and equipment onto 20, 463L pallets and can move out in 12 to 24 hours," Maple explained.  "We bring a state of readiness and professionally trained Guardsmen to meet any challenge."

The day also marked the end of Lt. Col. Dale Storr's flying career.

On Feb. 2, 1991 during the first Iraq War, then Capt. Storr was captured by Iraqi Soldiers after his A-10 Thunderbolt was shot down near Kuwait. His family and friends believed he had died when his aircraft went down.

A prisoner of war for 33 days, Storr spent a portion of his time in Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison.

"It's been a wonderful career," Storr said moments after his fellow Guardsmen had engaged in the traditional water drenching.

"It has been (an) honor to have served in the Guard," he said.  "And these employers here today are part of that success."