Published: November 29, 2008 07:15 pm      

Tazewell County soldiers depart for Afghanistan

RICHLANDS, Va. — As they gathered in the parking lot outside of the Virginia National Guard Armory at Richlands, one of the 22 soldiers in the 276th Engineer Battalion preparing Saturday afternoon to leave for Richmond, Va., observed that it it appeared as though the unit was carrying more food than gear.

“I wouldn’t complain about that soldier,” Command Sergeant Major Earl Griffith (Retired) said. After 27 years of military service that started with a tour in Vietnam, Griffith hugged each of the soldiers as he wished them all a successful mission and a safe return home. “I would go in place of any one of them if they would let me,” Griffith, 68, said.

The 22 Tazewell County soldiers were called to active duty to join the main body of the 276th in Richmond prior to the battalion’s departure from the Landmark Theatre. From Richmond, the 276th will travel to Camp Shelby, Miss., for final mobilization training before they are deployed to Afghanistan in late January in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

“We’re picking up more soldiers along the way to Richmond,” Sgt. 1st Class Phillip Kern of Rosedale, Va., said after fielding a call from a guardsman who was hoping to catch the bus on I-81 somewhere between Roanoke and Staunton, Va. “We don’t want to miss anyone.”

Kern’s cell phone rang twice during the departure ceremony as he stood at parade rest at the front of the formation of soldiers. “Whoever it is, he’s persistent,” Kern said before answering the phone.

Kern, 56, a 36-year military veteran didn’t answer his cell phone until Command Sgt. Major Daryl Plude dismissed the soldiers so they could visit with their families before boarding the bus. “I’ve been here full time for 25 years,” he said. In civilian life, he works at the maintenance building near the armory that is located near the entrance to Southwest Virginia Community College.

Sgt. 1st Class Matthew Hopkins, 41, of Gray, Va., was posing for photographs holding his 2-year-old daughter, Nevia, while his wife, Denora Hopkins was holding their 3-year-old daughter, Lisette.

“This is my fifth deployment,” Hopkins, who commands the Gate City, Va., based Virginia National Guard unit said. “Three of them were overseas. This is my last one. I’ll retire when I get back home.”

Jami Kinkead, family assistance center specialist worked with the media to organize the Richlands send off ceremony, and her efforts paid dividends as at least five regional television stations and three regional newspapers covered the event, prompting one office to observe that the media in Southwest Virginia could be more that the battalion will see when the full compliment of 200-plus soldiers leaves for Camp Shelby.

“I can still remember when my husband was deployed,” Kinkead said. “I was thinking about him on a 24 hour, 7-days-per-week basis. I remember getting on a roller-coaster ride one day and checking my necklace as the car was going up. We both have the same kind of necklaces,” she said. “When I did that, I wondered what he was doing at that moment.” Her husband, Master Sgt. Brian Kinkead, is now stationed at Fort Pickett in Blackstone, Va.

When he addressed the soldiers, Griffith spoke about the role of families. “The general public doesn’t understand what it’s like when you have a husband, wife, son or daughter in a war zone,” he said. He told the soldiers it would be a long 12-18 months. “Help each other. Talk to each other,” he said. “Take care of one another.”

Richlands Mayor Kenneth Wysor expressed the community’s appreciation for the soldiers. “We are behind you,” he said. “We will offer our prayers for you daily. We know that our freedom must be protected. We will pray for your families.”

Col. Steven Scott also expressed his thanks to the many family members who came to wish the soldiers well, and Lt. Col. James Zollar vowed to “do everything I can to take care of them.” Zollar asked the families to work closely with their family readiness groups to take care of things at home.

“Our goal is to bring all 200 soldiers back home,” Plude said. He said that by watching the news, most people know that “Afghanistan isn’t the safest place in the world,” and urged them to continue sending packages from home. “There’s no greater day than when the box shows up,” he said, adding that three-week old brownies taste great to a soldier who is deployed.

Ann Childress of the Family Support Group introduced Captain Andrew Tipton, commanding officer of the 276th’s Financial Support Center and Captain Rolando Rodriguez, commanding officer of the 276th Headquarters and Support Company. The battalion chaplain gave the benediction before Plude dismissed the formation.

The 267th Engineer Battalion was called to active duty from Dec. 18, 2003-Feb. 23, 2005, and was in Iraq from March 2004 through February 2005. The members of the 276th have been training on “IED (improvised explosive device) defeat and route clearance,” during their time at the mobilization station, according to a press release from the battalion headquarters.

Lt. Jonathan Lowe of the Tazewell County Sheriff’s Office said that police units of Southwest Virginia and southern West Virginia were placed strategically along the route to honor the departing soldiers. Members of the Casey-Shortt Post, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9640, served as a color guard for the soldiers during their formation at the armory as well as for when the bus left the parking lot.

– Contact Bill Archer at barcher@bdtonline.com