Artillery Battery Uncases Colors

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CHICAGO, IL (04/16/2015)(readMedia)-- Story by Staff Sgt. Patrick DeGeorge, 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs

Soldiers of the 2nd Battalion 122nd Field Artillery (2/122 FA) in Chicago gathered at the General Richard L. Jones Armory in Chicago April 12 for the uncasing of the colors for a new Battery C.

The ceremony marks the first time in nearly 10 years that the Battery has been part of the 2/122 FA.

"It's great to be the founding members of the new chapter of this battery's history," said Capt. William Fitzsimons of Evanston, Illinois, the new battery commander.

According to Lt. Col. Daniel Williams of Nashville, Tennessee, the battalion commander of the 2/122 FA, the new battery will be armed with new 155 millimeter cannons. Williams said the addition is something that will make the battalion a greater asset to the 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team.

"The new battery allows us to support the 33rd more effectively," Williams said. "This makes us one of the premier battalions in the country."

The new battery will go through a training process that will culminate with a live-fire exercise during the battalion's annual training at Fort McCoy, Wisconsin in July.

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Capt. William Fitzsimons from Evanston, Illinois, the commander of Battery C 2nd Battalion 122nd Field Artillery based in Chicago, passes the guidon to Sgt. 1st Class LaCarl Baker from Chicago, the battery first sergeant during the battery's uncasing ceremony in Chicago April 12. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Patrick J. DeGeorge, 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs)

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Lt. Col. Daniel Williams from Nashville, Tennessee, the battalion commander of the 2nd Battalion 122nd Field Artillery based in Chicago, passes the Battery C 2/122nd Field Artillery guidon to Capt. William Fitzsimons from Evanston, Illinois, the Battery C commander during the Battery's uncasing ceremony in Chicago April 12. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Patrick J. DeGeorge, 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs)

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Lt. Col. Daniel Williams from Nashville, Tennessee, the commander of the 2nd Battalion 122nd Field Artillery based in Chicago, and Capt. William Fitzsimons, from Evanston, Illinois, the Battery C commander, remove the case from the Battery C guidon during the uncasing ceremony in Chicago April 12. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Patrick J. DeGeorge, 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs)

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Staff Sgt. Bradley Boxlietner from Hampshire, Illinois, the supply sergeant for Battery C 2nd Battalion 122nd Field Artillery based in Chicago, presents flowers to Becky Fitzsimons from Evanston, Illinois during the battery guidon uncasing ceremony in Chicago April 12. Fitzsimons is the wife of Battery Commander William Fitzsimons. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Patrick J. DeGeorge, 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs)