Dalton 'Throws A Party' For
Its Hometown Citizen-Soldiers

More than 1,500 people showed up at Dalton’s Northwest Georgia Trade and Convention Center to say “Merry Christmas” and “thank you” to the Soldiers and families of 1st Battalion, 108th Armor.

Participants of the 108th Armor Holiday Extravaganza make their way through the buffet as the night’s activities begin. (Georgia National Guard photo by Sgt. Roy Henry)

The 108th, part of Georgia’s 48th Brigade Combat Team, has been alerted for active duty in Iraq. An estimated 1,200 members of the brigade report for duty this month, with another 2,000 expected to be called up after the first of the New Year.

“We’re extremely grateful to Rick Tanner and the convention center staff, the city of Dalton and Whitfield County for the ‘holiday extravaganza’ they put together for our Soldiers and families,” said Maj. Liston Edge, the battalion’s executive officer. “It’s so important for our members to know their fellow citizens support them and wish them well in times such as these, and this event was so representative of that support.”

Edge is acting for Lt. Col. John King, the battalion commander. King is at Fort Stewart near Savannah with members of his staff and the commanders under him. The group is getting ready to move to Kuwait and then Iraq where they will a first-hand look at what they will be up against during the coming deployment.

During the day, the convention center opened its doors the companies that make up the 108th so they could hold their usual Christmas functions, Edge said. Throughout the building Soldiers, their families and family support groups gathered for a variety of briefings on the deployment, what to expect while the Soldiers and families are apart and what benefits are available to families during the year and a half separation, he said.

Specialist Warren Bradford, an M1 Abrams tank driver of  the 108th’s Company  C hugs his daughter  Audrey Lian, age 1 1/2, after their dance together at the 108th Holiday Extravaganza. (Georgia National Guard photo by Sgt. Roy Henry)

“While there seemed to be more of an urgency than usual to do this, there also was a greater appreciation, I believe, for the meaning of the holidays,” said Command Sgt. Maj. David Knowles, the battalion’s senior enlisted Soldier. “I don’t think, I hope, no one came away without getting their questions answered and their minds being put at ease, in some way, about what’s happening or going to happen, in the coming months.”

As darkness fell on the trade and convention center, Soldiers dressed in Class A or dress blue uniforms, wives in their best evening dresses gathered in the center’s main room for an evening of dining, music and dancing. At times the main floor filled with couples holding each other close and dancing that last dance.

Among the official party to speak to the Soldiers and their families was Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor. He, like Brig. Gen. Terry Nesbitt, Army Guard commander, made a special effort to be there.

All during his speech, Taylor made it clear that the state, the communities and their citizens are proud of the Citizen-Soldiers, their families and the sacrifices they make in the name of freedom.

“There will always be things we as Georgians and as a nation are divided on from time,” he said, scanning the audience before him. “The one thing we will always, always be united in is our support of you, the men and women in uniform and your loved ones.

“Know that that will never change, and that we’ll be here for you, now, when you go and when you return,” Taylor said.