Twenty-four community send-off ceremonies are being held for some 1,800 Iowa National Guard soldiers who are deploying to the Middle East.
Iowa National Guard Adjutant General Stephen Osborn says the possibility of deployment has changed since he joined the Army in 1984. “There’s a reality of joining any branch of service right now that you’re going to deploy, you’re going to do something, you’re gonna serve your state or nation. It’s a contract we make with everybody that comes in, in today’s environment,” he says. In an interview with Radio Iowa, Major General Osborn says recruits know from the very beginning what is expected. “It’s one of the discussion points our recruiters have with parents and with young men and women that are thinking of joining that hey, you’re going to join for six years or you stay in for 26 years, you’re going to serve, you’re gonna serve your state in a disaster situation more than likely, and you’re probably going to deploy it. Our units deploy about once every five or six years,” Osborn says.
Osborn says laying that out early on is part of an overall change in dealing with the men and women who sign on. “I think they’re more up to date on what’s happening. You have to lead them differently, there’s a lot more dialogue, explanation to them of why we’re doing the things we’re doing,” Osborn explains, “and it’s not that they resist that. It’s just they want to know. They want to understand why they’re what they’re training for, why they’re training, why? They’re doing the things they are.”
Osborn says soldiers embrace the idea of being deployed. “They understand what they’re getting into, and they want to serve. They want to pick up a skill they want to pick up the things that we have to offer, you know, financially, educationally, but they want to serve their state, and they want to serve the nation. They want to go somewhere and do something,” he says. Osborn says the idea of service can’t be overlooked in today’s Iowa Guard. “You ask any of these folks why they joined, and they’ll have a number of reasons, college education, whatever it may be. But ultimately the one that one golden thread that goes through all of them is they want to serve. They want to serve Iowa, they want to serve their country, they want to give something back,” he says. Osborne says seeing the soldiers and airmen and the way they want to succeed and want to do things right is his favorite thing about leading the Iowa National Guard.
The sendoffs on Wednesday, May 28:
Boone (Brigade Headquarters) 3:00 PM – Boone Speedway, 92 troops deploying
Camp Dodge (113 CAV A & B Co) 3:00 PM – Pool Pavilion 113 troops deploying
Le Mars (113 CAV C Co) 3:00 PM – Le Mars High School, 45 troops deploying
Sioux City (113 CAV HHT & D Co) 3:00 PM – Bishop Heelan High School, 84 troops deploying
Dubuque (133 IN A Co) 5:45 PM – Dubuque Armory, 67 troops deploying
Iowa City (133 IN B Co) 5:30 PM – Melrose Readiness Center, 103 troops deploying
Iowa Falls (133 IN C Co) 5:00 PM – Iowa Falls Armory, 86 troops deploying
Davenport (133 IN D Co) 3:30 PM – Davenport Armory, 60 troops deploying
Waterloo (133 IN HHC & G Co) 6:00 PM – Cedar Falls High School, 218 troops deploying
Carroll (168 IN A Co) 4:00 PM – Carroll High School, 90 troops deploying
West Des Moines (168 IN B & C Co) 4:30 PM – West Des Moines Readiness Center, 214 troops deploying
Council Bluffs (168 IN HHC & D Co) 4:00 PM – MidAmerican Center, 178 troops deploying
Red Oak (334 BSB H Co) 4:00 PM – Red Oak Armory, 60 troops deploying
Sendoffs on Thursday, May 29:
Estherville (194 FA A Co & Det 1) 1:00 PM – Estherville Armory, 76 troops deploying
Camp Dodge (194 FA B Co & Det 4) 1:00 PM – Pool Pavilion 64 troops deploying
Fort Dodge (194 FA HHB, D2, & F Co) 1:00 PM – Fort Dodge Armory, 81 troops deploying
Mount Pleasant (224 BEB A Co) 2:30 PM – Theatre Museum of Repertoire Americana, 46 troops deploying
Cedar Rapids (224 BEB C Co) 2:00 PM – Cedar Rapids Armory, 9 troops deploying
Johnston (224 BEB D Co) 2:30 PM – Joint Force Headquarters’ Motorpool, 9 troops deploying
Davenport (224 BEB HHC, B & E Co) 2:30 PM – Mississippi Fairgrounds Speedway, 101 troops deploying
Sendoffs for Friday, May 30th:
Camp Dodge (334 BSB C Co) 5:00 PM – Freedom Center, 16 troops deploying
Cedar Rapids (334 BSB HHC, A & B Co) 5:00 PM – Cedar Rapids Armory, 105 troops deploying
(Story and photo courtesy of our media partner, Radio Iowa)
