With an eye on the clock, family, friends and commanders surrounded deploying service members, offering hugs and handshakes, prayers and good wishes.
But the whirl of emotion at McGill Training Center was fleeting. At 7:20 p.m. on March 4, 17 members of the 742nd Military Intelligence Battalion headed to Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport.
The group had assembled just an hour earlier to say their goodbyes before leaving on a roughly seven-month deployment to Iraq. "This is our farewell, that's why we do this," said Lt. Col. Timothy Chafos, commander of the 742nd MI Battalion, after the program. "It's an opportunity to assemble as a unit, hear from their leadership and say goodbye to their families." During the program, Chafos briefly discussed the group's mission - an advanced technical mission in support of brigade combat teams in multiple locations across Iraq. The group, MAD DAWG 5, will be under the operational control of the 303rd MI Battalion.
Chafos reassured audience members, who traveled from Indiana, Illinois, North Carolina and Virginia, that the Soldiers are sufficiently trained. The group, which assembled last December, completed a 90-day training program that started in early January.
"There is a certain amount of risk any time a Soldier is deployed to a combat theater," he said. "The most important thing we do to minimize these risks is to give these Soldiers good training. I feel it's my mission to you to make sure they undergo rigorous training. They've done that." The group, he said, is also well-led. "We are very comfortable with the leadership and are confident in the training," Chafos said. "I look forward to seeing you again here in September with all their limbs, all their fingers and proud of all their accomplishments." Capt. Stephen DuPerre, the detachment commander who is leading the group in Iraq, also reassured the crowd. "For most of these Soldiers, this is their first deployment," he said. "You are probably experiencing a lot of emotions, and are fearful, anxious. But I want you to feel proud. Very few will do this for their country." At the program's start, 704th MI Brigade Chaplain (Maj.) Bill Killough prayed for the "hedge of protection" around the Soldiers as he handed them bandanas bearing Psalm 91, in which King David beseeches God for protection during battle. "Keep them healthy, keep them safe and protect them from evil," Killough said.
At the end of the program, Sgt. 1st Class Michael Dickerson, noncommissioned officer in charge, re-enlisted in view of his wife, Lakeisha, a Department of the Navy police officer, their 13-month-old son, Michael Jr., and their relatives.
"I'm excited but also sad because I'm leaving my family," he said. "But I also have a job to do and have to make sure to bring everyone home safely." This was the first deployment for Staff Sgt. John Ford, who enlisted six years ago. "Of course IA,A1m a little worried, but it's a good opportunity to serve," he said.
Ford was hugged repeatedly by his mother, Jacqueline, who drove in from Chicago with her grandson, DiJohn Keaton, 19. "This is my baby," she said of Ford. "He is a wonderful son, the best son." Keaton could barely speak as he wiped away his tears. "He's my uncle, but he's always been like a brother to me," he said.
Sgt. Michael Caamic, and his wife, Leizl, a sales associate at the Post Exchange, hugged quietly. This is the first time the young couple will be apart since they married two years ago. "I'm anxious, nervous, excited, everything," said Caamic, about his first deployment.
Dickerson's parents, Shirley and Harvey Dickerson, traveled to Fort Meade with their daughter and several grandchildren from Lynchburg, Va. "I came to see my son off," Shirley Dickerson said. "I'm very proud of him. I don't understand or agree with the war. I am very concerned because I know the danger. But I know God is going to protect him and bring him home a better Soldier." A prayer circle was later formed by Dickerson's family and his church leaders, Pastor Stan Montgomery and his wife, Pastor Lejoi Montgomery, of Church Without Walls in Fort Washington.
"We came to support Mike and pray for him to let him know we are in his corner," Pastor Lejoi Montgomery said. "These Soldiers stand for America and we are here because we love America."
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