Central Ohio Today

State Representative Tracy Richardson of Marysville led a visit to the Youngstown Air Reserve Station (YARS) this week. Accompanying her were State Representatives Ty Mathews from Findlay, Haraz Ghanbari from Perrysburg, Nick Santucci from Niles, and David Thomas from Jefferson.

The delegation met with base leaders to discuss how the General Assembly can support military personnel and improve the installation's infrastructure. The representatives learned about the unit’s organization, mission, and base priorities, as well as challenges that could benefit from legislative support.

“This visit was a great opportunity to strengthen our relationship with the base and to demonstrate the state’s commitment to supporting our military forces,” said Representative Richardson, Chair of the House Veterans and Military Development Committee. “During our tour and meeting, we were able to learn more about the base’s mission and had a wonderful exchange of ideas and information. It’s clear that the Youngstown Air Reserve Station plays an important role within their community, and we were grateful for the time to hear from them directly about their priorities.”

Representative Mathews also expressed his appreciation for the visit: “I greatly appreciated the opportunity to visit the Youngstown Air Reserve Station with my colleagues. These kinds of visits help inform our policy discussions in the Ohio House and are critical to our conversations around how we can best support our military.”

The 910th Airlift Wing is the host wing at YARS. This Air Force Reserve unit carries out missions involving tactical airlift, agile combat support, employment, and operates as the Department of Defense’s only large-area fixed-wing aerial spray capability.