Lansing, Mich. - Following a 12 month tour of duty in Afghanistan, 29 Michigan Army National Guard Soldiers from the Ironwood/Iron River-based Company B, 107th Engineer Battalion will return home tomorrow.  They are expected to arrive at the K.I. Sawyer International Airport in Gwinn at approximately 1 p.m.  A brief ceremony in the main terminal will follow.

The Soldiers were called to active duty March 2005 and sent to Fort Hood, Texas, for in-processing and mission specific training.  They arrived in country May 2005.  While in Afghanistan, the Soldiers provided security for roads in and out of Afghanistan.

Today, approximately 800 Michigan National Guard Soldiers and Airmen are deployed across the globe to locations such as Iraq, Kuwait, Afghanistan, and Kosovo.  Since Sept., 11, 2001, approximately 75 percent of the Michigan Guard has been deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom; however, as Michigan troops serve the nation, more than 80 percent of the Michigan Guard remains available and ready to respond to a state emergency including a terrorist event.

MEDIA ADVISORY

Media is invited to attend the welcome home ceremonies.
(For more information contact Capt. Scott Etelamaki at 906-361-3777.)