Lightning Division cases colors

FORT DIX, UNITED STATES

11.08.2009

Courtesy Story

99th Readiness Division

By David Moore

Fort Dix -- The 78th Division colors returned Nov. 7 to a parade field where troops called Doughboys once trained for World War I and participated in the building of a new camp known as Dix.

While the 'Lightning Division' colors were cased by present-day Soldiers, a new brigade flag unfurled on the Army Support Activity's (ASA's) Sharp Field bearing the name of the 78th Training Brigade (Operations).

As part of the ceremony, four former 78th Division commanders participated in the casing of the division colors, which features the lightning bolt cutting through a semi-circular field of red that depicts the Soldier's patch worn on the Army uniform's left -shoulder sleeve .

"This is the final act of transformation of the 78th Division," Brig. Gen. Walter B. Chahanovich, the last 78th Division commander and first brigade commander, said. "We will continue to train the men and women of combat support and combat service support units of the Army Reserve."

Last month, division leaders held an inactivation ceremony at Camp Kilmer -- named after famed poet and journalist turned Soldier Sgt. Aldred Joyce Kilmer. The division headquarters was the last major headquarters on the post that served as a major processing point for Soldiers deploying for World War II and returning home.

The 78th Division has been a part of Fort Dix history since the post's beginning in 1917. While the division's storied past has included deploying for World War I and II, locally at Dix it is best known as a force providing training assets and expertise for those deploying overseas. Some of its subordinate units for Desert Storm deployed to Southwest Asia. Training experts for the division served as vital assets for preparing Soldiers for peacekeeping operations in Bosnia and today's contingency operations around the world.

Chahanovich said the division history and its recent training operations at Fort McCoy, Wis., are what brought the unit to the parade field with its new operations mission. The brigade's new home is at the 99th Regional Support Command's Maj. John P. Pryor Reserve Center at the ASA.

The recent training exercises for the newly formed brigade included providing training operations for nearly 7,000 Soldiers at Fort McCoy, Wis.

"As a new organization, we will execute this mission with the same valor as those who came before us," he said.

At the ceremony's beginning with a 78th Division Doughboy helmet on the podium, Chahanovich said while it may be a sad day to case the division's colors, "don't be surprised to see these colors unfurl again when the national calls."

• Date Taken: 11.08.2009
• Date Posted: 11.18.2009 20:11
• Story ID: 41752
• Location: FORT DIX, US