NY Army Guard Soldiers farewelled before African mission, today, Thursday, Jan. 2 in Buffalo

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Soldiers of the 152nd Engineer Support Company training at Fort Drum this summer while preparing to deploy to Africa.

BUFFALO, NEW YORK (01/02/2025) (readMedia)-- One hundred and forty-five New York Army National Guard Soldiers assigned to the 152nd Engineer Support Company will be recognized at a formal deployment ceremony today, Thursday, January 2, 2025, at Buffalo's Connecticut Street Armory.

The Soldiers will be serving in the Horn of Africa for almost a year.

Members of the press are invited to cover the ceremony.

WHO: Soldiers and family members of the 152nd Engineer Support Company, and New York National Guard leaders. Also attending will be Brig. Gen. Isabel Rivera Smith, the commander of the 53rd Troop Command; Col. Christopher Guilmette, the commander of the 153rd Troop Command; and Lt. Col. Nicholas Whaley, the commander of the 204th Engineer Battalion.

WHAT: A formal farewell ceremony before the Soldiers depart for their mobilization station at Fort Bliss, Texas. The Soldier will train there for four weeks before deploying to Djibouti to support Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa

WHEN: 2 p.m., Thursday, January 2, 2025.

WHERE: The New York National Guard's Connecticut Street Armory at 184 Connecticut St, Buffalo, New York.

Reporters wishing to cover the ceremony must contact 1st LT Daniel Hamlin at 315-796-5765 for access to this secure military facility.

Coverage Opportunities:

Reporters will be able to interview Soldiers and family members as well as New York National Guard leaders. There will be opportunities for still and video imagery of the ceremony.

BACKGROUND:

The 152nd Engineer Support Company, is based at the Connecticut Street Armory in Buffalo and is an element of the 204th EngineerBattalion, which is headquartered in Binghamton and also has units located in Horseheads, Cortlandt Manor and Walton.

The company is commanded by Capt.Daniel Roche .

The company will deploy to the U.S. base in Djibouti --Camp Lemonnier -- and provide engineer support to U.S. based in the region. The company will work on base security improvements and buildings related to Soldier welfare and operations. The task force with a strength of about 2,000 personnel from across the U.S. military operates in Sudan, Somalia, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Seychelles and Kenya.

The 152nd has been training for this mission for the past six months, at Fort Drum and other military training area. The Soldiers will train for four weeks at Fort Bliss, Texas before deploying.

They are expected to remain in Djibouti for 10 months and return to New York in November.

Soldiers of the 152nd deployed to Puerto Rico in 2017 to help the territory recover from Hurricane Maria in 2017, and has responded to snowstorms and flooding across New York.

In 2002 and 2023, the New York Army National Guard deployed 1,100 Soldiers as Task Force Wolfhound to provide security forces at Camp Lemonnier as well as U.S. based in Kenya and Somalia.

Alpha Troop of the 2nd Squadron, 101st Cavalry Regiment, which is assigned to the armory in Geneva, New York, was part of that security mission