Rep. Max Rose, D-N.Y, at a House Veterans' Affairs Committee hearing in 2019. (Stars and Stripes)

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WASHINGTON – Rep. Max Rose, a Democrat from New York, will start National Guard duty Wednesday after his unit was called to support the state's response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Rose, a combat veteran who served in Afghanistan, is a captain in the Army National Guard. He will serve at Staten Island facilities as an operations officer in the coronavirus response. He made the announcement in a video posted to Twitter on Tuesday.

“You won’t be hearing from me as much because I’ll be activated in the military,” Rose said. “This is a small, small thing compared to the doctors, nurses, our front-line medical staff and our first responders out there each and every day putting their lives on the line without the equipment they so desperately need.”

Rose represents Staten Island and parts of southern Brooklyn. His staff will continue to work on constituent services, he said.

Nearly 15,000 members of the National Guard have been activated across the country to support states’ efforts to combat the pandemic. The New York National Guard had activated 2,700 personnel as of Tuesday.

“Soon enough, I’ll be back out of the military and in my full roll as congressman,” Rose said. “Stay safe, stay strong, and I’ll see you soon.”

Wentling.nikki@stripes.com Twitter: @nikkiwentling