JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas (Oct. 22, 2020) -- Leaders from the 923rd Contracting Battalion cased their organizational colors during a ceremony Oct. 20 at Fort Riley, Kansas, in preparation for deployment in support of Operation Inherent Resolve in the coming weeks.
Lt. Col. Robert Bartruff, the 923rd CBN battalion commander, and Sgt. Maj. Jason Martinez, the battalion sergeant major, cased the colors before a small audience of fellow Soldiers, members of Mission and Installation Contracting Command-Fort Riley and family during the ceremony also broadcast virtually on social media.
As part of his remarks, Bartruff said the ceremony marks the second time the 923rd CBN has cased its colors for a deployment in support of operations overseas since its activation at Detroit Arsenal in Warren, Michigan, in July 2014, and the first time since the battalion uncased its colors at Fort Riley in July 2017.
“The battalion returns to Iraq for a second time to continue to build on the operational contract support successes and progress of previous contracting battalions and activities,” the commander said. “The battalion is well and ready, all of which was made possible from the monumental support of the Mission and Installation Contracting Command and 418th Contracting Support Brigade staffs, and especially to the proud dedication and commitment of the Soldiers and civilians of the 923rd and MICC-Riley.”
The casing of colors is an Army tradition as the unit flag represents the history, honor and esprit de corps of the Soldiers assigned to the unit. The ceremony symbolized the battalion headquarters’ departure from Fort Riley. The colors will be uncased upon the 923rd CBN’s arrival in Iraq.
About the MICC:
Headquartered at JBSA-Fort Sam Houston, Texas, the Mission and Installation Contracting Command consists of about 1,500 military and civilian members who are responsible for contracting goods and services in support of Soldiers as well as readying trained contracting units for the operating force and contingency environment when called upon. As part of its mission, MICC contracts are vital in feeding more than 200,000 Soldiers every day, providing many daily base operations support services at installations, facilitate training in the preparation of more than 100,000 conventional force members annually, training more than 500,000 students each year, and maintaining more than 14.4 million acres of land and 170,000 structures.
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