Photo By Staff Sgt. Kim Snow | Pfc. Jason L. Pontious, an infantryman with Company A, 1st Battalion, 148th Infantry...... read more read more
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By Sgt. 1st Class Kimberly Snow,
Adjutant General's Department Public Affairs
Ohio National Guard
FORT HOOD, Texas - A warming midday sun ducked in and out of the clouds as a
steady, cooling breeze whipped the colors, making their bearers grip the
staffs tighter in an attempt to steady them. The colonel snapped to
attention, shouted out a command and the massive, 2,500-Soldier formation
began to move, marching across the field and into history.
The troops, assigned to the Ohio Army National Guard's 37th Infantry Brigade
Combat Team, snaked around the parade field and passed in review before their
leaders, families and friends March 27 in what was for many, the largest-and
arguably the most significant-formation of their careers. After three months
of training, they were finally on their way. Destination: Kuwait and Iraq.
Estimated return: January 2009.
"The Soldiers have worked hard and we're ready to go," said Brigade Commander
Col. Richard T. Curry, who has previous deployments to Iraq, Kuwait and Korea
under his belt. "I know the lay of the land. I plan to come home very proud
that I contributed to the effort and made our nation strong."
The formal pass in review highlighted a sendoff ceremony from the brigade's
mobilization station to its forward operating base in Kuwait, where most will
spend the remainder of the yearlong deployment. The "Buckeye Brigade,"
comprised of about 1600 Soldiers from Ohio and 900 from Michigan, will
conduct base operations and security duties and some units-Ohio's 1st
Battalion, 148th Infantry Regiment and Michigan's 1st Squadron, 126th Cavalry
Regiment-will also conduct convoy escort duties into Iraq.
The 37th arrived at the east-central Texas post in January and spent three
months training on north Fort Hood. It is by far the largest reserve
component force to mobilize through the post to date, said Sgt. Amy E.
McLaughlin, public affairs officer for the Fort Hood Mobilization Brigade.
Command Sgt. Maj. Albert Whatmough, the senior-ranking enlisted man for the
37th, said the relative isolation at the training area on north Fort Hood was
ideal for their purposes, allowing the Ohio and Michigan troops to fully
integrate and concentrate on training. He praised his troops' focus and said
most of them were anxious to get on with the mission.
"I'm always excited to deploy," Whatmough said. "I've seen a lot more
examples of volunteers than those who don't want to go. Some of these guys
have volunteered for two or three deployments. Their tenacity, their
dedication to country amazes me every day."
A career Soldier and father of two, Whatmough deployed to Iraq in 2004 and
understands the strain a deployment can put on families. However, he credits
those same families with helping to prepare the troops for their mission.
"It's hard deploying," the Akron native said. "My daughter is graduating high
school this year, but we all must do our duty. It's really the families, it's
their strength, the (family readiness groups) back at home who make the
difference. They helped these Soldiers stay focused on their mission during
their time here. Their strength and confidence allowed them to do that."
Both Whatmough and Curry described the quality of training they and their
troops received as exceptional. The mobilization brigade tailored training to
the specific needs of the 37th as commanders weighed in with specific
concerns. They also reorganized training to accommodate an amendment to the
mission that required one of the Michigan units to be based in Iraq.
Whatmough called the battalion sergeants major the "driving force" for the
brigade, pushing the Soldiers to ensure they were fully prepared for each
day's training.
"I can't say enough about these guys," Whatmough said. "The NCO leadership
worked till it was done-not to the end of the prescribed duty day. These guys
were up well after training ended, reading their manuals, aligning their
optics to prepare for the range the next day, making sure they and their
equipment were ready for training. I've heard so many great stories and seen
so many great things."
The troops spent the afternoon following the ceremony with a Texas-style
barbecue complete with games and activities. The event capped off a four-day
weekend most spent with family and friends, many who had driven, flown and
bused in to spend what might be their final weekend together with their loved
ones for the next nine months. The event was organized by volunteers and all
food was donated by a local vendor.
Pfc. Jason Pontious, an infantryman with Company A, 1st Battalion, 148th
Infantry Regiment, spent the weekend surrounded by his extended family. After
returning home from basic training this past June, he now leaves behind his
wife, Tabitha and two sons, Caleb, who will be 2 in May and Wyatt, only 3
weeks old. He said although it was tough being separated from his family, the
training he received at Fort Hood was invaluable.
"It's been great having them out here; we went to Sea World," Pontious said.
"It's gonna be very hard to leave, especially with the new one. But I'm ready
to go. I feel very prepared for this mission. The training overall was great
and our company is great."
During the ceremony, Curry addressed the family members and thanked them for
their sacrifices.
"Leaving a family is definitely harder than fighting the war," he said. "I
want to say thanks to the families; without you, we couldn't do it."
He also spoke of the sacrifices of his troops and of the mission ahead.
"These Soldiers have demonstrated great courage and damn dogged
determination," Curry said. "This brigade is prepared to march forward to its
destiny and complete the mission. Hooah!"
| Date Taken: | 04.21.2008 |
| Date Posted: | 04.25.2008 13:04 |
| Story ID: | 18776 |
| Location: | FORT HOOD, TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 140 |
| Downloads: | 101 |
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