SCHWEINFURT, Germany -- Shortly before leading his staff and about 200 other
Soldiers of the 2nd "Dagger" Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division into the
Finney Fitness Center here for their welcome home ceremony Nov. 20, Col. J.B. Burton
reflected with reporters on the U.S. Army Europe brigade's 15-month mission to
Operation Iraqi Freedom.
"We're coming home. Fifteen months of hard fighting. Fifteen monthsof positive and
measurable change across everywhere that a 'Dagger' Brigade Combat Team formation
was located," Burton said, detailing a few of the accomplishments of his subordinate
battalions' task forces.
Task Force 1st Battalion, 77th Armor. Ramadi. "The Anbar Awakening" that garnered worldwide
attention. Task Force 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry.
"They went into an area of Baghdad that hadn't seen thick presence of coalition forces in
maybe about a year. They went into a very difficult area of operations," and succeeded at
establishing stability on dangerously violent streets, he said.
West Rashid and Task Force 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry. The 2nd Brigade Combat Team.
"We were effective in stopping Shia extremist expansion out of the northeast of our area
of responsibility," Burton said.
While the 9th Engineer Battalion and 1st Battalion, 7th Field Artillery were detached
from the 'Dagger' Brigade in Iraq, Burton maintained a watchful eye on them and their
missions as his brigade was supported by a vast support structure from other units.
"We ended up with five task forces from five brigade combat teams from five different
installations in the continental United States, all working under the 'Dagger' Brigade
Combat Team," he said.
"You're going in with formations you just didn't know," he said. "But the integration
went very easy."
One reason.
"A tremendous, tremendously capable brigade combat team was formed because we had
fantastic American Soldiers that were grounded in the United States Army values," he
said.
As the deployment wound down to a close, Burton says he pondered the difference that
his Soldiers made in all the corners of Iraq where they "put their boots down."
"We leave with a sense of accomplishment, but one that is extremely fragile. There's got
to be some very difficult decisions on the part of the government of Iraq, and we know
that," he said, noting that the integration of Iraqis into the nation's political and security
solutions will further advance the improvements made by "Dagger" Brigade Soldiers.
The colonel said that as much as his Soldiers have done in Iraq, they're glad to be home.
"This great community in Schweinfurt, this little community at the end of the railroad
tracks, I think, is bustling, ready for Soldiers, their Families and friends to be reunited
after what I personally believe has been a decisive time in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
These great Soldiers have made a difference," he said.
"They're ready for a well-deserved break. You can see it in their eyeballs right now,"
Burton said before leading his Soldiers back to their Families on the other side of Conn
Barracks.
Social Sharing