By MATT JOYCE
Tribune-Herald staff writer
Saturday, January 01, 2005
With hotels booked and eateries buzzing, New Year's Day in Waco should prove to be more active and more emotional than the average Jan. 1.
The hurried efforts that began six weeks ago to organize a deployment ceremony for 3,000 National Guard troops will come to fruition at 2 p.m. today at Baylor's Floyd Casey Stadium.
Officials predicted 18,000 visitors to the Waco area and potentially 20,000 to 30,000 guests at the send-off for the 56th Brigade Combat Team of the Texas National Guard's 36th Infantry Division.
"I know that (the troops and their families) are going to remember this for a long time to come, the way they were treated here," said Carla Lowe, the Waco Convention and Visitor's Bureau director of sales and Internet development.
The troops, mainly from North and West Texas, will depart for year-long deployments in Iraq shortly after the ceremony. The unit, which has been training at Fort Hood since August, is known for its distinctive "T-patch" that features a "T" for Texas inside an arrowhead.
Along with accommodating the influx of travelers and helping plan the ceremony, Waco residents and businesses scrambled to go beyond logistical needs of troops and their families.
McLennan County's 3,300 hotel rooms are already booked and 42 restaurants, many of which typically close on New Year's Day, have contacted the convention bureau to publicize that they are open today.
The convention bureau projected that visitors will generate $4 million for the Waco area.
To help the troops stay in touch with their families from Iraq, Baylor University organized "Operation Phone Card." The effort raised $122,753 in less than a month to purchase pre-paid 140-minute phone cards for each guard member.
Baylor will use leftover funds beyond the the initial goal of $105,000 to purchase phone cards for other Texas military members, a Baylor news release said.
"We achieved the goal because Central Texans sincerely care about these soldiers and their families," said Tom Hill, a Baylor associate athletic director and coordinator of the fund-raising effort. "I extend my thanks to all those who reside in this area for their generous contributions."
As another gift to troops, Bill Johnson, of Waco, and other volunteers were preparing to distribute Bibles to each soldier, plus a copy of "Soldier's Prayer" for soldiers, families and friends.
"It's all about soldiers out there risking their lives for us and, you know, we want them to have Bibles," Johnson said. "The Army gives them Bibles, too, but we wanted them to have a little one, small enough they can stick it in their backpack or put it in their pocket."
The Bible distribution campaign was yet another quick turnaround effort, sparked when Julie Curtis-Win, executive director of Texas Military Family Foundation, based in Bell County, contacted Johnson for help in the endeavor. The organization has been helping approximately 100,000 soldiers, both those coming back from Iraq and departing for it.
Baylor police chief Jim Doak said the gates of Floyd Casey stadium, on Valley Mills Drive, will open at noon for the 2 p.m. event. The Ferrell Center, at the intersection of University-Parks Drive and LaSalle Avenue, is the backup venue in case of inclement weather.
Dave Martin, a National Weather Service forecaster in Fort Worth, said the weather Saturday should be unseasonably warm and humid, with a temperature in the low 70s, a 20 percent chance of rain and south winds at 10 to 15 mph.
Troops will congregate with their companies and enter the stadium at different locations than the general public, Doak said.
The public will be allowed to enter through two of the stadium's main gates on the west side, which is also where they will be seated. One of the stadium's east gates will be open.
Doak said parking will be available at the stadium. He reminded visitors that their bags will be checked, and that backpacks or bulky items are discouraged. Purses are allowed, he said.
The ceremony itself will include an entrance by the National Guard and speeches from Gov. Rick Perry, Sen. John Cornyn and Col. Red Brown, the Iraq-bound commander of the 56th.
Video:
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Great!..Ping to a Texas send off to our Texas Guard..3,300 being honored and other good things..
You don't have to read the original LAT..the full text is posted on down.