Iowa Guard soldiers get emotional sendoff
"Ironman Battalion' on fifth Mideast mission since 2003; part of 1,800 from Iowa
CEDAR FALLS — Let’s get one thing straight: A troop sendoff is not a celebration.
It’s a promise. And it’s a prayer.
The promise is this: We’re here for you now. We’ll be here while you’re gone. And we’ll be here when you get back.
The prayer is this. Please come home. Safe.
The sendoff Wednesday night at Cedar Falls High School for members of the Waterloo-headquartered Iowa Army National Guard 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry Regiment was no different.
The prayer was in the wavering voice of a soldier’s grandma.
“I don’t think I’ll be able to keep my eyes dry,” she said. A few succeeded. A few.
The prayer, and support, was in the spending money handed out to soldiers by a guy who’d literally been in their boots — the Rev. Paul Lippstock of Mason City, a Catholic priest who served 22 years as a National Guard chaplain, including a deployment to Iraq.
“I wish I brought more! “ Lippstock said. Twenty-two years earlier, he was delivering the invocation as the 1/133rd shipped out as Sinai Peninsula peacekeepers in a sendoff a half mile away as the University of Northern Iowa’s now-demolished West Gymnasium.
That was the unit’s first overseas deployment since World War II and following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on America. The 1/133rd, called the “Ironman Battalion” for its 611 consecutive days in combat in Italy in World War II, is now embarking on its fifth overseas deployment since 9-11. Every one has been to the Middle East — or as the soldiers call it, “The Sandbox.”
The prayer was in the heart of one soldier who embraced another as his little girl rode on Dad’s strong shoulders.
The prayer was in the handshakes and backslaps that an Ironman combat veteran, Master Sgt. Wade Corell, administered every soldier passing by him in line as they headed out the door. He’s served in the Sinai, Iraq, Afghanistan and Qatar, the first with his two brothers and in all four with his father, Maj. Gen. Benjamin Corell, retired adjutant general of the Iowa National Guard and a former 1/133rd commander.
There were some smiles, even some muffled laughter when a little one shouted out in delight when she spotted Daddy in line with his soldier buddies. But the overall mood was hushed and subdued, contrary the usual raucous atmosphere of a high school gym on a game night.
There were smiles as folks greeted friends and neighbors, but those smiles masked the pit in one’s stomach and the lump in one’s throat as the inevitable business at hand finally arrived: The moment of parting. One little girl simply buried her head in her teddy bear.
Graying veterans wearing ballcaps telling of their service long ago knew that moment full well, eyes fixed stoically forward on the 200-plus assembled troops in front of them. They were members of the 1/133rd’s headquarters, headquarters company and G. Company. The battalion also has companies in Dubuque, Iowa City, Iowa Falls and Davenport.
It was one of two dozen such sendoffs scheduled around the state this week. About 1,800 soldiers from around the state are being deployed as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, part of some 7,000 soldiers from 21 states. They’ll be trained at Fort Johnson, formerly Fort Polk, in Louisiana before shipping overseas.
Even Iowa Guard Brigadier Gen. Derek Adams, himself a UNI ROTC alum, had to pause to compose himself during his sendoff remarks to soldiers’ families.
“My family knows how hard this deployment is,” he said, drawing a breath. “Spouses, parents, children. loved ones: Your support makes this service possible. I know this deployment and this next year isn’t going to be easy, because I’ve done it four times myself. You shoulder the daily sacrifices that often go unseen. But the leadership of the Iowa National Guard recognizes it. Know that your role is not just vital, it is foundational…Your sacrifice is profoundly appreciated. We thank you and we stand by you today and throughout the deployment until every soldier is home.”
“Service is not an individual commitment,” Cedar Falls Mayor Danny Laudick said. “It’s a commitment by ever mother, father, spouse, sibling, son or daughter…We will have your back. We’re here for you and your family while you serve.”
“We are with you and we will be here to welcome you home,” said U.S. 2nd Dist. Rep. Ashley Hinson.
Those expressions of support translated into a prayer on the lips of that soldier’s grandma trying to keep her eyes dry:
”I hope they all come home safe.”
A video of extended cheers the soldiers received at the sendoff’s conclusion is below.
Pat Kinney is a freelance writer and former longtime news staffer with the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier and, prior to that, several years at the Ames Tribune. He is currently an oral historian with the Grout Museum District in Waterloo. His “View from the Cedar Valley” column is part of “Iowa Writers Collaborative,” a collection of news and opinion writers from around the state who previously and currently work with a host of Iowa newspapers, news organizations and other publications. They are listed here. Clink on their individual links to check them out, subscribe for free - and, if you believe in the value of quality journalism, support this column and/or any of theirs with a paid subscription. Thank you.