Local Guardsmen called up for service in Iraq

The Idaho National Guard was officially notified Friday that some of its units, including those assigned to the armory in Mountain Home, would be called up for active duty next month and sent to Iraq.

Their tour of duty is expected to last about 18 months, roughly one year of which will be spent in Iraq.

Elements of the 116th Cavalry Brigade, the core element of the Idaho Army National Guard, will officially be "federalized" on June 7. About 750 members of the Guard are involved in the initial call-up.

The Department of Defense has not yet announced when the rest of the brigade will be mobilized, although the Idaho National Guard expects that will likely take place in the coming weeks. The Guard was placed on alert on Feb. 29 for possible deployment.

The personnel being mobilized initially are support, intelligence and headquarters staff members, according to Maj. Gen. Jack Kane, Idaho adjutant general.

"The initial call-up of Idahoans is taking place to prepare the rest of the 116th Cavalry Brigade for mobilization," said Kane. "This first wave of soldiers is needed to ensure leadership, logistical and information needs are met when the rest of the brigade's members are mobilized."

Included in the inital call-up were the members of the 145th Support Battalion, whose Detachment 1, Company B, is assigned to the armory in Mountain Home. About 35 Guardsmen, most of them from Elmore County, are assigned to that unit, which provides maintenance for the brigade's heavy equipment.

The Guardsmen will report to Fort Bliss, Tex., by June 10, for updated training, then attend a mission readiness exercise at either the National Training Center at Ft. Irwin, Calif., or the Joint Readiness Training Center at Ft. Polk, La., before deploying overseas. The brigade will likely embark on the overseas portion of its mission this fall, and will incur a one-year commitment "in country." In total, the mobilization is expected to last approximately 18 months.

Although they normally train one weekend a month and two weeks of advanced training each year, citizen-soldiers of the National Guard are trained using the same standards as their active-duty counterparts in the U.S. Army and the 116th has a reputation for the quality of its troops and equipment that equals that of most "line" units.

Their training, much of it at local armories and the Orchard Training Range just west of Mountain Home, enables them to "seamlessly blend in with the Army, when federalized, to take part in overseas operations such as Operation Iraqi Freedom 3," Guard officials said.

"We've known since the end of February that this call was likely to come, and Idahoans were going to be mobilized for duty in Iraq," Gov. Dirk Kempthorne said.

"All Idahoans should recognize not only the dedication and sacrifices being made by our citizen soldiers, but also the contributions being made by the soldiers' families, employers, and others in their communities. The state is doing all it can to help Guard families during the deployment, and I call upon all citizens to support our fellow Idahoans in this mobilization. We all have our duty to support one another."

Federalization means that all guardsmen and their families will qualify for all benefits available to regular forces. In the next few weeks, representatives from the Guard's Family Assistance Coordination Office will be going out to local communities to photograph family members in order to provide them with regular military dependent ID cards. "They're now part of the full-time, active duty forces," said Lt. Col. Tim Marsano of the Guard's public affairs office.

The Idaho National Guard provides a wide variety of support services to family members of the citizen-soldiers, through the family assistance office, including legal assistance, financial assistance, crisis information, and "well being" support (best known locally as MWR).

Family members of guardsmen being deployed can contact the family assistance office at 1-800-453-0887, or 422-3787 or 422-4330.

In addition, information about services offered to family members and more details on the deployment can be found at two web sites: www. IDARNG.com, the Idaho National Guard's webside (go to the 116th Cavalry Alert Information page), or at www.armyonesource.com. Those who do not have computers at home are urged to make use of the public access computers at the Mountain Home Public Library.

Support group centers also are available at the armories in Boise at Gowen Field, and in Idaho Falls, Twin Falls, Couer d'Alene and Pocatello.

Marsano noted that the Guard recognizes the burdens federalization places not only on family members, but on employers as well. "There are consequences when a small business loses an employee for a year and a half," he said. "We appreciate the support of our employers. We couldn't do it without them." Employers who wish to know more about support of the guardsmen being deployed, and their own responsibilities, are urged to visit the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve website at: www.ESGR.org.

Maj. Gen. Kane, the adjutant general of the Idaho National Guard, rose through the ranks of the Guard and at one time served as commander of the 116th Cavalry Brigade. He is one of the few adjutant generals in the United States certified to lead troops in combat. U.S. Army cavalry brigades are typically a little "lighter" than regular armored brigades, usually in terms of heavy weapons support, and are designed primarily for reconnaisance and screening operations of larger forces.

The Army National Guard exists in all 50 states, three territories and the District of Columbia. The governors are the Commanders in Chief of the National Guard in their respective states and territories. Their adjutants general are answerable to them for training, readiness and command and control of the units. At the state level, the governors reserve the ability, under the Constitution of the United States, to call up members of the National Guard in time of domestic emergencies or need.

During peacetime each state National Guard answers to the governor of its respective state or territory. During national emergencies, however, the President reserves the fight to mobilize the National Guard, pitting them in federal duty status. While federalized, the units answer to the combatant commander of the theater in which they are operating and, ultimately, to the president.