Several hundred members of the 30th Brigade Heavy Combat Team of the North Carolina National Guard left for Iraq last night. About 4000 members will be heading over in the next week or so for a 12 month tour. Been following these men and women for a while now as they prepared to go, training, back home, out for more training. Is seems to me especially tough for those families of Guardspeople when they go overseas. Not what many had signed up for, but they go none the less, as their duty dictates. The NCNG took heavy casualties in their last deployment so I hope that these men and women make it back unscathed. It will be one more chapter in my project on the effects of the wars in the Middle East on those left at home, as well as the lasting effects on the soldiers and Marines who serve. Other chapters can be seen on my website or for full edits please go to the archive. A few photos below
Glad you working on this. I don’t get the last picture but the first two I think show a nice slice of what it must be like for these folks to prepare to ship out. Between the (nervous?) laughter and the last nap with the rifle as a pillow (about the most uncomfortable thing I’ve ever thought of.. thanks for the visual).
That and all the pristine skin, uniforms and weapons is a stark contrast to the images we’ll see of these soldiers, and others like them, in a few weeks time. Remarkable … and exactly at your aim of what ‘home’ means for them
Last picture was just of them heading to the plane, but you are right, is does not quite fit in with the other 2 as far as mood, really just informational. The laughter was real, but ended quickly when the plane arrived.
And I agree, I can think of few things more uncomfortable than sleeping on a rifle.
Thanks for looking