SCHOFIELD BARRACKS, Hawaii -- Soldiers serving with the many companies, battalions, and brigades of the 25th "Tropic Lightning" Infantry Division exercised their bodies while displaying their morale and solidarity Jan. 29 by taking part in a Division group run through Schofield Barracks, Hawaii.
The newly redeployed 3rd "Bronco" Infantry Brigade Combat Team and the 25th "Phoenix" Special Troops Battalion joined the 2nd "Warrior" Stryker Brigade Combat Team and the Rear Detachment of the 25th Combat Aviation Brigade for the annual four-mile run.
"Division runs are important tradition in our Army and allows all units, from the smallest platoon to the division itself, to demonstrate pride in the unit," said Col. Thomas P. Guthrie, Tropic Lightning's chief of staff.
The run began immediately following the reveille with the division's command staff leading the 25th STB on a circular route, with the 2nd SBCT and 3rd SBCT joining in the formation along the way.
"It was a wonderful run," said Sgt. 1st Class Dionne Nelson, the senior human resources sergeant for the 25th Inf. Div and a three-time participant in the annual run. "The esprit de corps, the cohesion, and the morale were great."
This event allowed the units comprising the 25th Inf. Div. on Schofield Barracks to run as a whole for the first time in several years.
"With all of the deployments these past few years, it is rare to have so many units on Schofield at the same time," Guthrie said.
All of the division units on Schofield Barracks were present excet the 25th CAB, which is currently deployed to northern Iraq.
"To their credit, however, the aviation brigade just completed an Iraq version of the Great Aloha Run. We thank them for keeping the Hawaiian spirit and applaud all units who participated in the division run."
The window of opportunity for the most complete division run was a narrow one, with one of the brigades soon to deploy.
With the pending deployment of the 2nd SBCT to Iraq, and the forthcoming departure of Maj. Gen. Robert L. Caslen Jr., the commanding general for the 25th Inf. Div., the run also served as a symbolic farewell for some.
As the units crossed the finish mark, the commanders and personnel of the unit offered salutes to their Tropic Lightning leader as a sign of respect and gratitude for the success and teamwork of the division.
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