Photo By Staff Sgt. William Henry | Indiana Army National Guard Sgt. 1st Class Eric Cornelius stands during the invocation...... read more read more
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By Spc. William E. Henry
Indiana Army National Guard
SHELBYVILLE, Ind. - About 150 Indiana Army National Guard aviation Soldiers, along with families, friends and dignitaries, attended a ceremony to wish them farewell on their upcoming tour of duty in Kuwait to support Global War on Terrorism.
The departure ceremony for the 2nd Battalion, 238th General Support Aviation was held at the Army Aviation Support Facility in Shelbyville, Ind., Nov. 7, 2008.
Soldiers were honored at the ceremony with many encouraging words from speakers like Maj. Gen. R. Martin Umbarger, Indiana adjutant general, who spoke of the missions Soldiers face on the home front and abroad.
"When the governor needs us, our first responders need us, when we needed aviation to fly in southern Indiana during the floods you were always there. We are always there not only for our federal assignments but for the citizens of our state," said Maj. Gen. Umbarger.
For Spc. Shannon Dart, avionic mechanic, he says this is the chance he's been waiting for to finally serve his country overseas and couldn't wait.
"Since Sept. 11th, I've wanted to join, and then I finally got in. Now I have this awesome military occupational specialty," said Dart.
Shannon also spoke of the people in the unit he's deploying with in the coming months, stating, "We all get along really great. I wouldn't want to go overseas with anyone else. We're like a big family."
Maj. Ed Guilford, a liaison officer, says he couldn't manage without the support from family members back home.
"For the families, it's especially important for them to be patriotic. I've got a wife and six children, and my wife works hard while I'm gone. She's at home taking care of business so I don't have to worry and I can take care of my job while I'm away," said Guilford.
| Date Taken: | 11.07.2008 |
| Date Posted: | 11.17.2008 15:25 |
| Story ID: | 26459 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 81 |
| Downloads: | 64 |
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