Inactivation ceremony set for 94th Engineer Battalion

By Staff Sgt. Mark S Patton (1st ID)October 2, 2014

Inactivation ceremony set for 94th Engineer Battalion
(Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

An inactivation ceremony for the 94th Engineer Battalion is scheduled for 10 a.m. Wednesday on Fort Leonard Wood's Gammon Field. The ceremony is open to the public.

The storied 94th Eng. Bn. "Wolverines" are part of the 4th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade, 1st Infantry Division.

The 94th Engineer Battalion was originally constituted as the 53rd Engineer Battalion in 1933 and the Wolverine identity originated in 1941 when the battalion was activated at Fort Custer, Michigan. After being re-designated as the 94th Engineer Service Regiment, the unit participated in several World War II campaigns in North Africa, Italy and Germany, to include the Naples-Foggia, the Rome-Arno, the Rhineland and the Central Europe campaigns.

While serving in various stateside locations throughout the years, as well as France and Germany, the Wolverines have deployed to several locations to include Iraq, Afghanistan, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo.

The 94th Eng. Bn. has called Fort Leonard Wood home since 2006.

Since arriving to Missouri, the companies of the 94th Eng. Bn. have completed a variety of range construction and improvement projects on Fort Leonard Wood as well as providing support to the installation's snow and ice removal efforts, enabling the base to be operational during inclement weather.

Other recent missions showcase the diversity of the 94th Eng. Bn.

In 2011, 94th Eng. Bn. troops deployed to Nogales, Arizona, to construct three sections of security roads along the U.S.-Mexico border for the U.S. Border Patrol in coordination with Joint Task Force-North. Unit officials say the projects saved the U.S. Government more than $700,000.

The 94th Eng. Bn. constructed an Unmanned Aerial System Runway on the Sukchon Drop Zone for the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, in 2012, and just last year, a group of Wolverines completed construction of a flight landing strip at Fort Riley, Kansas, the largest stateside construction mission in the history of the 94th Engineer Battalion.

The Soldiers were able to accomplish many missions on the homefront while also deploying troops to Afghanistan and Kuwait for a variety of missions throughout recent years. Additionally, the unit was on standby, prepared to rapidly deploy anywhere in the continental U.S. in the event of a homeland chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear environment in support of the local, state and federal agencies.

The 94th Eng. Bn. also gave back to the community by participating in the Adopt a Highway Program, making facility improvements to the Pulaski County Human Society, constructing a concrete staircase for the Waynesville Park, and constructing fishing piers, compliant with the American's with Disabilities Act, to improve Stone Mill Spring.

Lt. Col. Sam Volkman cited the unit's 81-year legacy of engineering excellence as he looked ahead to the battalion's final days.

"We invite everyone to join us in our inactivation ceremony as we professionally case the colors in a military ceremony," Volkman said. "We will honor the fine Soldiers, Families, and our strong Army communities who have been instrumental in the accomplishments of the battalion for the last two centuries."

(Editor's note: Patton is a journalist assigned to the 4th MEB public affairs.)