By: BILL JONES/Staff Writer
Source: The Greeneville Sun
10-16-2004

Nov. 11 is traditionally a day set aside to honor veterans of the United States military, but the day will have special meaning for many Tennesseans this year.

That’s because Nov. 11 has been set as the day Tennessee officials will be hosting special “send-off ceremonies” at Camp Shelby, Miss., to honor the soldiers of Tennessee’s 278th Regimental Combat Team (RCT) deploying to Iraq.

Among those soldiers are nearly 100 from Greeneville-based Troop G.

The main ceremony will take place on the Camp Shelby Main Parade Field beginning at noon on Thursday, Nov. 11, according to a Tennessee Army National Guard news release issued on Friday.

Media representatives have been invited to attend the event, which will involve an entire regiment of more than 4,000 soldiers. This is the largest deployment of Tennessee National Guard soldiers since World War II.

The 278th Regimental Combat Team is scheduled to depart "shortly after" Nov. 11. The specific departure date is not being released at this time, according to the National Guard.

More than 3,200 of the 278th RCT are Tennessee Army National Guard members, while soldiers from Wisconsin, Texas, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Vermont and New York are also in its ranks.

Hundreds of family members, along with national, state and local dignitaries will attend the Nov. 11 send-off.

The soldiers of the 278th have trained at Camp Shelby since June and just completed a 30-day evaluation rotation at the National Training Center (NTC) at Fort Irwin, Calif.

The NTC at Fort Irwin is the U.S. Army’s premier desert training facility.

That training was necessary, because the 278th RCT is scheduled to be deployed first to Kuwait, then to northern Iraq by January.

Story Copyright to Greene County Online