Local Indiana Army National Guard Unit Mobilizing For Deployment To Iraq
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David Slone-dslone@timesuniononline.com
As men and women in the local unit of the Indiana National Guard prepare to leave for Iraq, the community is asked to show their support to boost the guardsmen's morale.
Monday, soldiers from Alpha Co., 1st Battalion, 293rd Infantry are mobilizing as part of the 76th Infantry Brigade in support of the global war on terrorism.
In an interview Friday afternoon, Capt. Kyle R. Baer said Alpha Co. is deploying to Iraq in support of the global war on terrorism. The Alpha Co. includes 100 soldiers from the Warsaw and Peru area, and 50 other soldiers from other parts of the state, Baer said.The 1st Battalion of the 293rd previously deployed in 2003 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. For some of the soldiers in the unit, this will be their first deployment.
The Alpha Co. guardsmen will be in Warsaw for three days before leaving for more training and preparation.
At 5 p.m. Tuesday, the soldiers will enjoy a dinner with their families at the armory. The dinner is for only the soldiers and their families. Civic leaders have been invited to speak at the dinner.
Business owners also may speak to the families of any help the business is willing to offer to the guardsmen's families while the soldiers are overseas. Any business representative that wants to attend should contact Sgt. Arturo Garcia or 2nd Lt. Matthew Mason at the armory to get on the agenda to speak. During the last deployment, Baer said, as an example, Jiffy Lube offered the guardsmen's families free oil changes.
Then at 7 a.m. Wednesday, the unit will leave Warsaw by commercial buses, escorted by the Kosciusko County Sheriff's and Warsaw Police departments. The Indiana National Guard asks the community to see the soldiers off by standing by their place of work or residence and wave at the bus as it leaves town. If anyone wishes to wave flags or signs, they are free to do so.
"The soldiers love to see that," said Baer. They like to know they are supported by the community, he said.
According to information provided by KCSD Sgt. Chad D. Hill, the caravan tentatively is planning on traveling south on Ind. 15 into Warsaw, turning west onto Fort Wayne Street and traveling toward the Warsaw American Legion Post. The caravan then will turn left at the intersection of Buffalo Street, and continue south past the old courthouse. The unit then will turn east onto Center Street, and head onto U.S. 30 toward Fort Wayne. Whitley County units then will pick up the caravan in their county.
"This is the least that we can do to show our support for our military troops," said Sheriff Rocky Goshert in a press release. "We pray for their families during this time of season and for a safe return to our community."
Baer provided a tentative timeline for the guardsmen. From Dec. 12-22, the soldiers will be at Camp Atterbury for mobilization training and preparation. They then will be released to spend Christmas and New Year's with their families. On Jan. 2, the guardsmen will report to the RCA Dome in Indianapolis for a departure ceremony for the whole brigade.
The guardsmen then report to Fort Stewart, Georgia, for training. They will be there for approximately 60 to 90 days for mobilization certification. After leaving there, they head to Iraq.
"It is going to be a year-long deployment," said Baer.
Approximately 3,400 members of the Indiana Army National Guard will be mobilized for deployment overseas. It is the single largest Guard unit deployed from Indiana since World War II.
Baer was deployed before, but he said this deployment will be different than the deployment in 2003.
"For me, my expectations of this one is, I have a responsibility as company commander to prepare this unit," said Baer. He said he has platoon leaders in charge of making sure the platoons are ready to go. He said he brought Mason and other platoon leaders on early to help with the preparations.
"We've done a lot of training, a lot of good training," said Mason. He said they have done more training than he thought they'd do before mobilization started.
The deployment will be Mason's first.
"I get to prepare my soldiers. We will go over there and do a good job," said Mason. "I expect no less."
Mason is married, and his wife also is in the military. She knows what to expect with his deployment, he said. However, being in the National Guard, there is much a soldier must do to set up his civilian life before being deployed.
Baer said leaders like Mason help soldiers get their civilian life in order before they are deployed - making sure they have wills, power of attorney and that their families are enrolled in the insurance program the military has available. Mason is heavily involved in preparing that, and there are many tools families can go to in order to make sure everything is ready before the soldiers are deployed.
While the guardsmen are deployed, Garcia will remain at the Warsaw armory to coordinate assistance with area families and soldiers. Sgt. Brian Shoaf will coordinate for Peru. Amanda Zachary, chairman for the Family Readiness Group, also is tasked with helping guardsmen's families while the soldiers are away.
"It is very important to the Indiana National Guard and my unit and myself that the family, employers and the community are prepared for part of the community to be gone for a year, and that the community supports that," said Baer.
