NE Arkansas bids farewell

Well-wishers from throughout the area were on hand Monday at Walnut Ridge to offer support to National Guardsmen being deployed to Iraq. Among them were Weldon and Elizabeth Holder of Walnut Ridge. Mrs. Holder said they have no relatives shipping out, but several friends. Three buses took more than 100 soldiers for advanced training at Camp Shelby, Miss., prior to eventual deployment for convoy security in Iraq.
(Times photo/Ron Kemp)

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Specifically, the soldiers leaving on three buses on a supporter-lined Highway 67 are members of Company A, 2nd Battalion, 153rd Infantry -- part of the 39th. More than 100 soldiers left from Walnut Ridge, among numerous units of the 39th involved in the deployment from other points across Arkansas. Company A is headquartered in armories in Walnut Ridge and Rector.

In all, some 3,200 soldiers will be deployed, according to Maj. Craig Heathscott, public affairs officer for the 39th Brigade. Of those soldiers about 1,000 are not regular members of the 39th, but were assembled from around the state. Of those attached to the 39th are five members of the 875th Engineer Battalion including five current or former Piggott residents. That group includes Lance Holcomb, Tyler Fraysher, Michael Ely, Larry Sells and Terry Burdin.

The soldiers are coming off a 10-day holiday leave and will be at Camp Shelby, near Hattiesburg, for about two months. They then will get a three or four-day pass before heading to Iraq. It is anticipated that family members will visit the soldiers in Mississippi during that pass period.

"About half of the 3,200 being deployed are combat veterans," Maj. Heathscott said, noting earlier service in Iraq by the 39th. The soldiers are on a 400-day deployment this time, according to Maj. Heathscott.

An unusual aspect of the training cycle this time is that the Arkansas soldiers were able to complete about two months of their exercises in-state, a departure from past policies. Maj. Heathscott, a Little Rock soldier who will be on the Iraq mission, said the training system has been successful and likely will be implemented by other National Guard units around the nation. He said the system has been good for morale, since soldiers are able to spend most nights and weekends with their families during the initial stages of training. "The families have really benefited from this training," he said.

The Mississippi training will be team-oriented, according the Maj. Heathscott, and will be the culmination of earlier training which has emphasized some 40 "warrior training tasks" for the 39th.

"The experience of these soldiers is very high," Maj. Heathscott said, "and their morale is very good as they begin the final stages of training."

For Capt. Benjamin Vincent, company commander, this will be the second Iraqi deployment for the resident of Harrisburg.

"The home setting for our training was an amazing thing," Capt. Vincent said. He said all the soldiers appreciated being able to spend more time with their families than was normally the case.

The deployment in Iraq will be a convoy security mission, Capt. Vincent said. "The morale of the troops is very high. We have great community support and that makes it easier to do what we are about to do," Capt. Vincent said before boarding the bus for the eight-hour ride to Mississippi.

Friends, family and local school children lined Highway 67 on the cloudy and relatively warm morning as the bus caravan slowly moved away from the armory and on to points south. Many of those present waved small American flags and cameras were abundant as their husbands, fathers, brothers, sons, grandsons -- all heroes -- began their journey of sacrifice.