By: STEVE BLANCHETT
Source: The Newport Plain Talk
05-13-2004

NEWPORT—The Family Support and Readiness Group, Troop E, Second Squadron, 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment Army National Guard will host a “Send-Off Rally” on Saturday, May 22 at 1 p.m.

Chairperson of the Support Group Cyndi Seaman said the “Send-Off Rally” for the troops that are soon to be deployed from the Newport area to the middle eastern theater of operations will take place at Cocke County High School football stadium.

“The unit is expected to spend the next four months in Camp Shelby, Miss., undergoing advanced training before being sent overseas,” said Seaman. “The public is encouraged to attend the program and support the troops.”

Newport native and recent veteran of active duty in Iraq, Lieutenant Colone1 John Bell, will serve as Master of Ceremonies.

“This will be a patriotic celebration for some of the finest troops in the State of Tennessee,” said Seaman. “The 278th is a front line combat unit with a distinguished performance record and we’re proud of our men and want everyone to show them how proud they are of them by attending the rally.”

Attending the Support Group’s “Send-Off Rally” will be Major General Gus Hargett Jr., Tennessee Adjutant General and State National Guard Organization Commander.

“To honor his family connections in Cocke County retired Lieutenant General Hubert Smith will also attend the ceremony,” said Seaman. “Smith is the highest-ranking military officer born and raised in Cocke County since the Civil War.”

Colonel Dennis Adams, Commanding Officer of the entire 278th Army National Guard will attend the rally along with Lieutenant Colonel Frank McCauley, Commander of the Second Squadron of the 278th.

“Many local, state, and federal leaders, distinguished dignitaries, and local veterans groups will also participate,” said Seaman. “The Cocke County High School Band, which is directed by Pat Mason, will perform and the Cocke County Choir Director Michael Short will sing. The high school’s NJROTC will serve as greeters and ushers.”

Seaman said the support and readiness group is especially appreciative of the cooperation and enthusiasm of the Cocke County Director of Schools Larry Blazer and Cocke County High School Principal Gary Williams, for allowing the “Send-Off Rally” to be held in the school’s stadium.

“Our troops are called for difficult duty in a land far away,” said Seaman. “They will leave Newport with pride in their hearts for the mission which they will fulfill and a prayer on our lips and theirs for their safe return.”

Seaman said more information about the “Send-Off Rally” is available from the Army National Guard Armory at (423) 623-1266, the Newport/Cocke County Chamber of Commerce at (423) 623-7201 or on the web site at www.cockecounty.org.

National Guard spokesman Randy Harris said on Tuesday that the Newport unit of the 278th is not the only unit in Tennessee being effected at the 278th is Tennessee’s largest National Guard combat force and the entire unit is being mobilized for active duty.

The 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment is about a 4,000-soldier force outfitted with enough tanks and armored vehicles to fill 585 rail cars.

Harris said the last time the full regiment was deployed was the Korean War. The Knoxville-based regiment has squadron headquarters in Athens, Kingsport, and Cookeville and 30 armories scattered across Middle and East Tennessee including Newport.

“The units will mobilize at their home stations in a phased in process from June 7 through June 26, said Harris. “Within a few days of their mobilization date, the 278th will move to its mobilization site at Camp Shelby, Miss.,” said Harris.

Officials have not announced where the regiment’s mission will be.

Harris said currently there are about 138,000 U.S. forces in Iraq and that number was to be reduced to about 115,000 this spring, but a surge in anti-occupation violence caused officials to bolster the force.

“The 278th claims its roots in the pre-Revolutionary War militia that defended East Tennessee settlers from the Creek and Cherokee Indians,” said Harris. “It takes its motto “I volunteer, sir!” from the Tennessee militiamen who fought in the 1846 War with Mexico.”

Formed as the 278th Armored Infantry Battalion after World War II from a unit that fought at Normandy, the 278th Regimental Combat Team was last activated fully on Sept. 1, 1950, for the Korean War. It was released from federal service in 1954.

Harris said in recent years, the regiment provided flood assistance in Memphis, helped recover an F-14 fighter jet that crashed in Nashville in 1996, provided security at the Ocoee whitewater events for the 1996 Olympics, fought fires and aided search and rescue efforts in the Smoky Mountains and helped secure airports after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

The regiment received extensive training in desert combat in 2002 during maneuvers at the Army’s National Training Center in Fort Irwin, Calif., in the Mojave Desert.