Amy Beechler

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Instructor Beechler is currently a Technician/Paramedic with Frederick County (VA) Fire Department, and has been involved in EMS since 1990. She is a 2007 graduate of the Academy, and joined the staff shortly afterwards, always wanting to pay it forward to insure teams are properly prepared. As former Commander of the city of Fairfax (VA), she brings a high level of organization to the NHGA staff. Amy is currently a member of the Overhead Team for the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Weekend and a member of the Virginia LAST team. 

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Instructor Burrow lives in Mechanicsville, Virginia with his awesome wife Carrie and three children: Lauren, Conner, and Aiden. He began his career in the fire service in 2005 with Hanover Fire and EMS. Jason was promoted to Lieutenant in 2014 and currently serves as a Shift Commander. In addition to his service with Hanover Fire he has been a drilling reservist for the United States Air Force/Air National Guard since 2004. He attended the National Honor Guard Academy in 2007 and earned his instructorship in 2014. As a member of the Hanover Fire Honor Guard since 2005, he has gone on to become the Commander in 2013 where he still serves in this capacity. Jason is also a member of the Central Virginia All Hazard Incident Management Team and the Virginia Local Assistance State Team. Family is Jason’s number one priority, his own of course, but also the families of those he works with and for. He consistently exemplifies the Family First mantra and endeavors to reinforce the same principle in the students.

Instructor Bury lives in Fort Worth,Texas with his daughter Emma (his lil' bucket of craziness). He is a firefighter with Fort Worth Fire Department since 2010 and is a member of the Technical Rescue Team. He is also the Commander for his department’s honor guard. Kevin is an academy graduate and enjoys the interaction (in his unique style) and the networking that the course provides. In 1999, he joined the United States Marine Corps and developed a true love of drill and ceremony. Kevin still proudly serves in the Marine Corps Reserve and has been deployed to Iraq twice. He is dedicated to caring for the families of the fallen and feels that the family and their wishes should always be held above all else. The passion runs deep with this one!

Instructor Cannon has over 10 years providing emergency medical services to the residents and visitors of Sussex County (DE). He is part of their Honor Guard team, a member of the department’s Active Assailant Committee, and also a Hazmat Technician. He proudly served his country as a US Marine from 2007-2012. He and his wife have three beautiful children and enjoy making memories together. 

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 Instructor Coughlin and his wife are the proud parents of three children and reside in Bumpass (VA). He  has been a career Firefighter with Spotsylvania County Fire, Rescue and Emergency Management (VA)  since 2008, and currently holds the rank of Captain as well as Instructor. He is an integral part of his  department’s Honor Guard team, the NHGA staff, and the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation  command staff for the Honor Guard branch.  

 Instructor DeMarest comes to us from Bristol (CT) where he and his wife reside and are the proud  parents of two daughters. He is a Lieutenant with East Hartford Fire Department and excitedly looking  forward to retirement. He was a former East Hartford Fire Dept. Honor Guard Coordinator, currently  serves on the command staff of the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation in the Honor Guard branch.   

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 Instructor English comes to us from City of Fairfax Fire Department (VA) where he holds the rank of  Captain with over 20 years of service, and is currently assigned as the Director of Homeland Security  and Emergency Management for them. He is the Commander of the department’s Honor Guard that has  won multiple awards and Unit Citations for their teams’ performance and success. He also serves on the  Virginia Local Assistance State Team (LAST), the command staff of the National Fallen Firefighters  Foundation in the Honor Guard branch, and the city Peer Support Team.  The City of Fairfax’s motto is  “We live and work above the standard.”  He lives by this and always strives for perfection.  

Instructor Garner comes to us from south central Pennsylvania where she has been proudly serving alongside her colleagues at the Deputy Director at Cumberland County Department of Public Safety (PA) for over 25 years. Inspired from her experience as a student of the NHGA, she developed a crawl, walk, run plan to gain the support of leadership of each first responder discipline to develop an integrated honor guard team having members from law enforcement, 911, EMS, and firefighters.   Instructor Garner is also part of the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation command staff for the Honor Guard branch. an advocate for the Critical Incident Stress Management Team. In addition to being an instructor, she works with our host agencies through the progressive timeline to build a training environment that will set you up for success and provide an outstanding opportunity for all. She and her husband are proud parents of an Eagle Scout who will be pursuing a Conservation Law degree while serving with the Army ROTC.  

Instructor Gavurnik resides in Stephens City, Va with his wife of 16 years and two teenage daughters. After being born and raised in central New York State, he escaped the taxes and settled in Virginia where he is currently a Captain in Fire Operations with the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Fire and Rescue Department. Chris has spent over 25 years in the Fire and EMS field and has been with the Authority since 2003. In 2005 he was one the founding team members of the Authority’s Honor Guard and has been the Honor Guard Commander since 2015. Chris is a 2012 graduate of the National Honor Guard Academy and also serves as a Hazardous Materials Specialist his department. Instructor Gavurnik continually places service above self and sees great value in making sure new guard members remember the sacrifice of our fallen and that their families are honored and properly cared for. 

 Instructor Guerrero comes to us from Fort Worth Police Department (TX) where she has been a patrol  officer since 2008. She proudly serves on her department’s Honor Guard team and has a passion to serve  and teach others how to properly honor the fallen.  She served her country in the United States Marine  Corps as a Corporal for 4 years. She is the proud mother of two adult children and enjoys traveling.  

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Instructor Horne comes to us from the Commonwealth of Virginia and hails from Mechanicsville just outside of the City of Richmond. Zac has been a NHGA instructor since 2016. He served our country honorably in the USMC from 1989 until 2001 and continues to serve in the Coast Guard Reserve since 2008. Zac is married and the father of 5. He is the Executive Officer of the Hanover County Sheriff’s Honor Guard. Additionally, Zach holds several other leadership positions within HCSO and is an intricate member of the Critical Incident Team. Outside of the Sheriff’s Office, Zac is an active member of several Veteran organizations and his service driven ethics are a valuable asset to the staff as well as a shining example to those he comes in contact with.

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Instructor Irby is the Deputy Fire Chief for Spotsylvania County, (VA) Fire and Rescue Department where he has worked since 2001. He lives in Spotsylvania with his wife and son where he cheers on the UVA Cavaliers. Aside from being the DC he also the Honor Guard Commander. Jason has been involved in the fire service since 1996 and has a great passion to make sure that all received the honors bestowed upon them. This is seen in his involvement with the Virginia LAST, The Virginia LODD Memorial as Vice Commander, and in his participation with the command and coordination of the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial for the last several years as a Detail Commander. In his spare time Jason is also an Adjunct Instructor for his department and State Certified Fire Instructor for the Commonwealth of Virginia, a member of his department's Technical Rescue Team. Jason likes to share a quote by Calvin Coolidge; “No person was ever honored for what he received. Honor has been the reward for what he gave.” It is because of this Jason gives all of himself to help honor others and makes him a perfect fit as an NHGA Instructor as he gives 110% every time all the time to every person, class and detail.

Instrtuctor Jacobs is a native of Fauquier County, VA and a graduate of Ferrum College. She currently lives in Roanoke, VA with her husband and daughter. In 2011, Cara became an officer with the Roanoke County Police Department and in that time, she has held many positions to include General Instructor and Drill Instructor at the police academy, as well as traffic enforcement officer, specializing in DUI enforcement and instructing as a state certified drug recognition expert (DRE). Cara became a member of the Roanoke County Police Department Honor Guard in 2013 and currently holds the position of team leader. In July 2013, she graduated from The National Honor Guard Academy and immediately made an impact on her team for her discipline and attention to detail. Her integrity and desire to teach others are a perfect fit for the Honor Guard, who strive to serve others when needed most.  

Instructor Lehrter comes to us from Trotwood, Ohio where he has over 30 years of service. He currently holds the rank of Lieutenant with Trotwood Fire & Rescue, has served with their Honor Guard team since 2001and is striving to form a region team, and also a member of the Ohio LAST. His first introduction to military drill & ceremony was as a member of the Pershing Rifles while in college. He served in the Ohio Army National Guard and Army Reserves for a total of 8 years. He has competed multiple times at the National Honor Guard Competition at FDIC, been a member of the FDIC Honor Guard since 2018, and the Dayton National Cemetery Honor Guard. He obtained a certificate from the Department of Defense to provide military funeral honors for veterans including on federal property. Instructor Lehrter enjoys civil war reenacting and spending time with his beautiful family.