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Five elite Illinois National Guard soldiers deployed from Arsenal to Mongolia www.ourquadcities.com
As much of the nation watched pre-game Super Bowl hype, five soldiers with the Illinois Army National Guard were launched Sunday on a super showdown of their own. But this team’s big game won’t be held in sunny California, but the ancient Asian land of Mongolia.
A logistics advisor team of five soldiers from the Illinois Army National Guard’s elite 6th Battalion, 54th Security Force Assistance Brigade (SFAB) held a deployment ceremony on Sunday, Feb. 13, at the Rock Island Arsenal. After a short training in Texas, the team will join the active-duty Army’s 5th SFAB based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., to deploy to Mongolia. The six-month deployment is the first for the Illinois National Guard’s SFAB unit and represents the first SFAB to support the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, according to a Monday release.
The SFAB is an elite unit with a core mission to conduct training, advising, assisting, enabling and accompanying operations with allied and partner nations. The Illinois Army National Guard’s SFAB unit was activated in 2020, after about a year and a half of organizing the unit. The 6th Battalion, based at Rock Island Arsenal, represents the logistics experts in the 54th SFAB. The 54th SFAB headquarters is in Indiana.
“We just feel a tremendous amount of pride sending this team off,” said Maj. Keri Wolf, the officer-in-charge of 6th Battalion and one of the original full-time Active Guard-Reserve (AGR) officers charged with manning, equipping and training the new unit. “To see this all come to fruition is just a great feeling.”
Lt. Col. Bradley Roach, the 6th Battalion Commander, said he was “jealous” of the deploying team. “Although you are few in numbers, the positive effect you can have on the future relations between the United States and Mongolia is great.” Roach said the SFAB doesn’t just advise foreign defense forces, it also builds lasting relationships and trust between nations. Mongolia is an independent Asian nation sandwiched between China and Russia.
The logistics advisory team, designated Team 6621, consists of an officer-in-charge, a noncommissioned officer-in-charge/transportation expert, a supply/quartermaster expert, a maintenance expert, and a medical expert. “While they are all experts in their own field, they are also cross-trained in the other areas so they can effectively advise in any of the areas of Army logistics,” Wolf said.
Col. Tim Newman, the Commander of the 108th Sustainment Brigade, the 6th Battalion’s higher headquarters in Illinois, told the families of the deploying Guard members to please reach out if they needed support. “We are here for you,” Newman said.
Capt. Cameron Worley, a native of Peoria and officer-in-charge of the team, said he was excited for the deployment and promised to take good care of the soldiers while they are in Mongolia. In six months the team is slated to be replaced in Mongolia with another team from 6th Battalion.
“I’m honored to lead this first team and to go do what this unit is designed to do,” he said.
Published Date:2022-02-15
