Photo By Kimberly Hackbarth | Lt. Col. Issac G. Gipson, commander of 4th Battalion, 5th Air Defense Artillery...... read more read more
FORT HOOD, Texas – In preparation for their upcoming deployment to Southwest Asia, the command team of 4th Battalion, 5th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, cased the battalion colors Aug. 6, on Sadowski Field, here.
Lt. Col. Issac G. Gipson, commander, and Command Sgt. Maj. Micheal L. Leach, the senior enlisted Soldier in the battalion, carefully rolled up and securely cased the regiment’s colors.
“We stand here on historic Sadowski Field ready to take part in the rich tradition of our fore fathers,” Gipson said during his speech. “To go into a foreign land with one mission: protect American assets.”
He added that ADA is critical to the nation’s security.
“Our mission will be to provide air missile defense coverage of the Central Command commander’s critical assets,” Gipson said.
The deployment is Gipson’s first with the battalion, but not with the 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade; he previously deployed with 1st Bn., 44th ADA Regt.
“My expectation for the battalion during the deployment is (for the Soldiers to) become experts of their military occupational specialties,” Gipson explained.
Gipson said he also expects his Soldiers to better themselves by taking college courses, becoming more physically, spiritually, and mentally fit and strengthening their bonds with their families back home.
Spc. David Batres, an automated logistical specialist with Service Company, attached to 4th Bn., 5th ADA Bn., is also fairly new to the battalion, but said he is excited to deploy.
“I think it’s important that we go there because … as the Iraq and Afghanistan combat missions are dying down, our mission still maintains the same,” Batres said.
To Batres, the casing ceremony made his impending deployment feel more real.
“It’s exciting to see that we’re actually moving forward now and we’re going to go out there and do what we do,” the Omaha, Nebraska, native explained.
As members of the unit depart and begin the mission at hand, Gipson recognizes the importance of every Soldier and family member in the battalion.
“It is always a privilege to be a commanding officer of any size formation and especially being one that has a relevant mission of deploying to protect our nation,” Gipson said. “Without the Soldiers and Family members of the battalion, there’s no way that any one of us could possibly be successful, so I truly thank them.”
| Date Taken: | 08.06.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 08.07.2014 15:23 |
| Story ID: | 138631 |
| Location: | FORT HOOD, TEXAS, US |
| Hometown: | OMAHA, NEBRASKA, US |
| Web Views: | 401 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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