Posted on 06/18/2005 1:03:21 PM PDT by SandRat
Company is 2nd in Guard to be cited this war
Under a slightly scorching Friday morning sun, with a few family members and about 20 fuel trucks as witnesses, 133 men and women in the 2222nd Transportation Company of the Arizona Army National Guard received the Meritorious Unit Citation from the Department of the Army.
These soldiers weren't charged with fighting the war from camouflaged Hummers or flying missions in the prestigious Blackhawk helicopters, though they were responsible for making sure those vehicles got around safely. The work of the 2222nd involved delivering fuel and water to the vehicles in Iraq, ultimately traveling more than 1 million miles delivering fuel throughout the country.
The company was deployed in April 2003, returning eight months later. No one in the company died in Iraq, but a few were injured and had to return home early to care for their wounds.
The citation, the second given to a National Guard company in Operation Iraqi Freedom, is a few steps below the Purple Heart and the Medal of Honor, but judging by Col. Debra Spears' tears of joy as she read the citation to the troops, this was the pinnacle of achievement.
"I love these guys," she said shortly after the 10-minute ceremony. "Sometimes they're treated as truck drivers. They're not the sexy infantry. But fuel directly impacts the combat fighters."
Spears has worked with this company in some form since the early 1990s, when the company served during the Gulf War. During the presentation, Spears remarked that the citation indirectly honors the hard work the soldiers did 14 years ago.
"We thought we should have gotten recognized then (in the 1990s)," said Sgt. 1st Class Robert Estrada, who served with the company in the Gulf War. "But now, it's something they can't take away from us."
Estrada said the honor will be helpful in getting recruits interested in joining the company.
"For the new troops, they'll see this tradition we have set going forward," he said. "We raised the standard for ourselves."
Modern Day RED-BALL Express.
Good post -- thanks.
Bump SandRat.
Good news National Guard ping, Sarge.
Either there's a 2 missing in that poster, or an extra 2 mentioned in the article.
The article typo made it hard to find the actual transportation company. It is the 222nd and that's their logo.
Some copy editor didn't do his job right, then. (Speaking as a former copy editor.)
Not to say that it's really possible to be error-free all of the time, mind you. Just pointing out that the copy editor "should" have double-checked the facts of the case. Reporter should have too, actually.
After posting here for a couple years I have found myself typing they're instead of their. Thank God I became more lenient with everyone else before I fouled!
Had someone spotted the typo, it wouldn't have been so tough to find a graphic!
They might be the best trained in the world, but our guys still work hard and they deserve all the recognition and praise they can get.
I agree, on both counts.
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