Soldiers Return Home in Time for Christmas

FORT KNOX, Ky. -- Twenty-five Soldiers from 1st Theater Sustainment Command (TSC) returned home from Kuwait just in time for the holidays on Dec 13. They were greeted by family, friends and teammates at a redeployment ceremony at the Sadowski Center on post.

The Soldiers left for a six-month deployment in July to carry out the Strategic Operations and Plans (SOaP) mission.

Lt. Col. Carl Henneman, the chief of plans, and SOaP officer in charge, explained the 1st TSC deploys Soldiers to Kuwait in six-month rotations to carry out the enduring SOaP mission. He went on to explain what his team did during their time there.

"We trained with Jordanian military, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia military and other coalition partners," said Henneman. "We also planned for six months ahead, knowing how to be logistically prepared in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. As a result of our planning, we experienced the defeat of ISIS in so many different regions."

The 1st TSC deploys its Soldiers into three teams, Red, White and Blue. During the time Red Team deployed, they enhanced ammunition storage capacity, streamlined customs processing, increased force protection, decreased repair time for critical combat systems, and improved transportation contracts, saving millions of dollars. This enabled the accelerated defeat of ISIS in Mosul, Raqqah, and Tal Afar.

Henneman said how happy he is to be home. "I can't explain it. It's wonderful," said Henneman. "My son Carlos has gotten taller and now wants to challenge me in either soccer or basketball. I am thinking video games; he's thinking real life!"

Vanessa, the wife of Hennenman for the past 13 years, remarked on how happy she is to have her husband home.

"I'll give him a really big hug and tell him I'm happy he's here and I love him," Vanessa said.

Lt. Col Brett Ayvazian, commander, 1st Special Troops Battalion, 1st TSC, spoke at the ceremony highlighting the return of the soldiers.

"Today is a greatly anticipated day for our teammates returning and their families who've been anxiously awaiting their return from the moment they left six months ago," said Ayvazian.

The White Team recently deployed to Kuwait for a six-month mission and will continue to carry about the SOaP mission the Red Team helped to strengthen.