Geneseo-based National Guard Soldiers heading for Africa honored in Deployment Ceremony today, Sept. 10

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NY Guard Soldiers training at Fort Bliss to prepare for Africa deployment. Geneseo Soldiers deploying on Saturday will conduct similar training before heading for the Horn of Africa in October.

GENESEO, NY (09/10/2022) (readMedia)-- One hundred and thirty New York Army National Guard Soldiers will say goodbye to their families before leaving for a deployment to the Horn of Africa at the National Warplane Museum in Geneseo, New York, today, Sept. 10.

Members of the press are invited to cover the ceremony.

WHO: Soldiers assigned to A Company, 2nd Battalion, 108th Infantry which drills at the Geneseo Armory; Soldiers assigned to the 107th Military Police Company from New York City; National Guard families; and Brig. Gen. Joseph Biehler, the commander of the 53rd Troop Command.

WHAT: A deployment ceremony in which the Soldiers will bid farewell to their families and be saluted by New York National Guard leadership before leaving for Fort Bliss, Texas and eventually Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti. They will serve as part of the security force securing that facility, as well as other U.S. operating stations in the Horn of Africa region.

WHEN: 3 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 10, 2022

WHERE: National War Plane Museum, 3489 Big Tree Ln, Geneseo, NY 14454

Coverage Opportunities:

Interviews with Captain Cameron Manley, the commander of Alpha Company, Soldiers and family members and video and still imagery of the ceremony

Contact Capt. Cameron Manley at 315-525-8200 for information about the deployment ceremony.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

The majority of the 130 Soldiers mobilizing for deployment on Saturday, Sept. 10, are from Alpha Company of the 2nd Battalion, 108th Infantry of the New York National Guard, which is based in Geneseo.

A platoon' of Soldiers going on the mission were originally assigned to the New York Army National Guard's 107th Military Police Company which is based in New York City.

The Soldiers mission in Djibouti will be to provide security for Camp Lemonnier, which is the major U.S. military facility in the Horn of Africa. They will also assist in security at other locations in the region.

Following the ceremony on Saturday, Sept. 10, the Soldiers will sleep overnight at the Geneseo armory before boarding buses for the Rochester International Airport early on Sunday. They will travel to Fort Bliss, Texas where they will train for a month before deploying to Africa in Mid-October.

They are expected to be in Africa for about ten months before returning home.

In Africa the Soldiers will join 1,000 other New York Army National Guard Soldiers assigned to Task Force Wolf Hound which mobilized in June and who are expected to leave from Fort Bliss to Africa in the next few days.

Task Force Wolf Hound, which is built around the 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry, also includes Soldiers from the 2nd Squadron 101st Cavalry, which is headquartered in Niagara Falls, and Charlie Company, 2nd Battalion, 108th Infantry from Utica.

The Alpha Company and 107th Military Police Company Soldiers were notified for deployment later when additional requirements for forces were identified.

The Soldiers have been conducting live fire and medical training to prepare for the deployment, according to the company commander, Capt. Cameron Manley. They will conduct additional training at Fort Bliss to hone their skills for the Africa mission, he said.

The National Warplane Museum in Geneseo has made the facility available because of the museum's longstanding support for the New York Army National Guard.