The past and present of America”s military met Thursday at the Columbus Municipal Complex for a program welcoming home the Army National Guard 2-114 Battalion from a recent tour in Iraq.
Capt. Dennis Bittle, commander of the 2-114th”s Alpha Battery out of Columbus and Ackerman, spoke to a crowd of more than 100 supporters following a recollection by 91-year-old Columbus veteran Joseph Thompson, a Bronze Star recipient in the 66th Infantry Division during World War II.
Bittle happily reported all of the 114th had returned from its 2009-2010 deployment to Iraq. Twenty-eight members were lost during its 2005 deployment.
He highlighted the changes which took place in Iraq between the two deployments, stating the country faced less corruption among its leaders and a greater willingness to serve exhibited by most citizens.
“They”re happy we”re there and that now they can operate in a liberated country,” Bittle told the crowd.
The 114th”s mission changed profoundly between the two deployments. The artillery battery was at one point the most frequently used in all of Iraq during 2005. Bittle marveled how a battalion composed of “95 percent men who were not full-time military” could become the top artillery unit in the country.
“The logistics is tough to train for. And to become the best there is truly remarkable,” he said.
During its recent deployment, the 114th”s mission changed from firing big guns to escorting six-mile-long convoys of 70 vehicles over 100-mile stretches.
Once again, the 114th rose to the occasion, learning to use new equipment like the Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles, some of which are built in West Point.
“Our guys did it with no loss of equipment or life,” said Bittle.
Bittle compared and contrasted his own experience to Thompson”s. Both dated their future wives while in Officer Candidate School and both were pulled away from their families to fight overseas.
Recalling his wartime experiences, Thompson told how he argued with a commanding officer when he was pulled off of a troop ship with his men and ordered to command a supply vessel. The troop ship, the Leopoldville, was later struck by a torpedo in the English Channel on the way to France, killing 807 men, including many in Thompson”s unit.
That was one of several defining moments Thompson recollected. Another was giving all the food he had to a poor 8-year-old French girl during the bitterly cold winter of 1944.
“The smile on her face is with me still today,” said Thompson.
In the spirit of remembering America”s veterans, multiple businesses donated door prizes to the event and individuals brought food for a reception afterward.
Only a few members of the 114th were able to join Bittle at the ceremony. Many, he said, were at their civilian jobs. But he urged the crowd to continually remember the men and all veterans.
“If you know a guy in the 2-114th, shake their hand,” he said.
Jason Browne was previously a reporter for The Dispatch.
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