Bragg soldiers deploy to Iraq

Elaine Rodriguez, 4, rests her head on her father, Sgt. Simon Rodriguez, of Fort Bragg’s 659th Maintenance Company, on Wednesday afternoon at Pope Air Force Base’s Green Ramp as families say goodbye before troops deploy to Iraq. Also pictured are Sgt. Rodriguez’s son Elliott, 4, left, his wife, Sugeyra, and his son Edward, 6.

Families played, mothers wept and lovers hugged, squeezing in as much togetherness as they could before 5 p.m. came and the soldiers had to leave.

Two units — the 659th Maintenance Company and the 28th Combat Support Hospital — started a yearlong deployment to Iraq on Wednesday afternoon. More than 300 soldiers met in two industrial-size rooms at Green Ramp, their families and loved ones in tow, and emotions ran the gamut.

On one side, Sgt. Reshema Horton wrapped her infant son, Cameron, in her arms and swallowed a lump in her throat.

Horton has been in the Army three years, but this deployment — her first — came three months after Cameron’s birth.

“We tried to get a waiver,” her husband, Wesley Horton, said. “But they said no.”

Reshema Horton looked at her son and her husband, then shut her eyes tightly. “I don’t want to go,” she said softly. “Every time I look at him I cry.”

Read the rest at Fayatteville Online

Note: Due to problems with blogger we were unable to post news of deployments and returns for the last 10 days. This post is part of the update from that period.