Photo By Sgt. Maj. Jeremy Crisp | Lt. Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, commander of XVIII Airborne Corps and Fort Bragg, speaks...... read more read more
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After 15-months of dedication to the mission in Iraq, around 430 Soldiers and civilians from the XVIII Airborne Corps received awards for their service Tuesday evening at the Officers' Club at Fort Bragg, N.C., in front of their friends and families.
The XVIII Abn. Corps headquarters took over as the Multi-National Corps — Iraq headquarters at Camp Victory in February 2008. All the Soldiers redeployed to Fort Bragg by April 5.
The awards presented included 271 Bronze Stars, 105 Defense Meritorious Service medals, 92 Joint Service Commendation medals, 162 Army Commendation medals, 19 Army Achievement medals and three Joint Civilian Service Commendation medals.
Because of the large amount of people receiving awards, the presentation was divided between eight rooms at the Officers' Club. Lt. Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, the XVIII Abn. Corps and Fort Bragg commander, who also served as the Multi-National Corps — Iraq commander during the deployment, presented 36 Soldiers with their medals in the Lafayette room.
Austin joked with the audience that he was aware that some had nicknamed the ceremony the mother of all awards ceremonies and said that it was fitting, because the XVIII Abn. Corps gave "the mother of all performances."
"This was the finest group of professionals to take the field in a combat zone," said Austin. "When these men and women hit the ground, their work was literally game changing."
The XVIII Abn. Corps worked hand-in-hand with the Iraqi security forces during their time in Iraq, helping train and support them in security operations. Their joint security efforts resulted in decreased casualties and the safest election day in Iraq's history.
Master Sgt. R. Ray, XVIII Abn. Corps Fire Support Cell sergeant major, Battalion, who served as the fire support sergeant major said he was glad to be home and proud of the corps' achievements.
"Mission accomplished," said Ray. "The corps went over and completed the mission assigned. We have great camaraderie and worked well as a team."
Lt. Col. Mike Moore, XVIII Abn. Corps, managed the C-5 (plans section) during the deployment. It was his third deployment to Iraq, and he said there were many things to be proud of about the unit's time in Iraq, but it felt good to close out the deployment.
"It's good to be home and be with my wife. I just got to spend a week with my granddaughter, who I hadn't seen in 15 months," said Moore.
His wife, Kim, said she was proud of what he accomplished, but glad to have him home. She said just being able to see him was wonderful, but it's also nice to have him home to do the yard work.
As the Soldiers and families enjoy their well-deserved time together, the XVIII Abn. Corps remains ready to deploy again whenever their country needs them.
"The XVIII Airborne Corps is America's contingency corps. It is our job to be ready for what could happen, what goes unseen, and we will be ready. When the country calls," Austin said, "we will answer."
| Date Taken: | 05.06.2009 |
| Date Posted: | 05.06.2009 15:50 |
| Story ID: | 33284 |
| Location: | FORT BRAGG, NORTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 472 |
| Downloads: | 390 |
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