Katie Testerman, 5, rests her head on the shoulder of
her father, Sgt. 1st Class Mike Testerman, after her
preschool class at La Petite Academy hosted a party for
him at the school Thursday afternoon.

The Knoxville News-Sentinel
November 7, 2004

Time is short.

Ten days of leave is all the soldiers have before a historic deployment to Iraq.

The Pentagon has called Tennessee's largest National Guard unit to duty.

The Knoxville-based 278th Regimental Combat Team has spent five months training for its yearlong mission in Iraq - far from the unit's last deployment during the Korean War.

As the soldiers prepare for danger, the families prepare for absence.

Ten days to squeeze in a year's worth of memories.

Story Copyright to KnoxNews.com