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Stryker Brigade returns from Iraq

By J. C. Matthews
November 5, 2004

FORT LEWIS, Wash. (Army News Service, Nov. 5, 2004) -- For a couple of thousand Fort Lewis families, the wait is over.

And, for the remaining family and friends awaiting the return of 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, the end is in sight.

As the one-year anniversary of its deployment drew closer, the Arrowhead Brigade continued its mission-ending flow from Iraq to Fort Lewis this week, with about 3,000 members now home.

The Army's first Stryker Brigade Combat Team started its deployment Nov. 8, 2003, and served in northern Iraq as part of Task Force Olympia, headquartered in Mosul.

The Lancers of 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division recently deployed to Iraq to take over the Stryker Brigade's mission in the task force.

As the mission handover continued, planeloads of 3rd Brigade Soldiers arrived on an almost daily basis all week, with welcoming ceremonies held at Sheridan Gymnasium. First Lt. Nick Kardonsky of Company C, 1st Battalion, 23rd Infantry, returned Oct. 23 and was part of a group on hand at the gym Nov. 1 to greet more arriving members of his company. He said the fellowship among members of the unit helped make the deployment memorable.

"The thing I'd remember most is the fun we had with our friends and comrades, the missions we executed well, the missions that went flawlessly - those are the things I'll remember most," Kardonsky said.

"I think it's harder on wives to be back here, because they have more time to think about us being gone," he added. "They come home to an empty house, but I'm surrounded by my comrades and my buddies all day long. You live in your job."

The brigade's deputy commander, Lt. Col. Kevin Hyneman, called the support of families and friends back home "a heroic effort." Hyneman, who returned Oct. 11, spoke briefly to the crowd at the welcome home ceremony Nov. 1, and reminded the returning soldiers of their place in history.

"You were part of a significant operation to bring freedom to a country that hasn't tasted it - ever," he said. "The success that they're going to have in a couple of years is a direct result of your efforts and your bravery."

Some of the families gathered at the gym said that, as the time for their soldiers' return grew closer, they became more anxious.

"The longer he was over there, the more nervous I got," said Pat Arthur, who traveled from Marion, Ohio, to see her son return Nov. 1.

"I was driving myself crazy," said Amelia Selph, whose husband Spc. Daniel Selph of Company A, 1st Battalion, 23rd Infantry, returned Nov. 1. "I must have cleaned the house a million times."

Other spouses, veterans of previous deployments, took it in stride.

"I've been married eight years, and I've had him home every other year," said Virginia Garcia, whose husband Sgt. Bud Garcia of Company A, 1st Battalion, 23rd Infantry, returned Monday. "Still I feel awesome - I'm excited."

Sheivon Abkemeier was beaming. Her husband, Spc. Nathan Abkemeier of Company C, 1st Battalion, 23rd Infantry, returned Nov. 1, and she was anxious to take him to their new home, which he had never seen.

"It feels wonderful," she said. "I've got a baby on the way, a husband at home, I've got a new house - I'm doing good."