Guard honors Soldiers with historical DVD and journal

Soldiers of the 229th Multifunction Medical Battalion watch a historical DVD, chronicling the Guard's service since 9/11, after receiving it during a ceremony this weekend. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Antony S. Lee / 70th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)

By Spc. Antony S. Lee
Ngmo.pao@US.ARMY.MIL

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - A Jefferson City unit joined Guardsmen across the state in honoring its Soldiers during their monthly weekend drill at the Blue Armory in Jefferson City.

In a ceremony mirroring others taking place at armories across the state, the 229th Multifunction Medical received an interactive DVD chronicling the Guard's service since 9/11 and a journal to write down their recollections of deployments.

"We can take pride in the fact that each one of us is here today because we chose to be here," said Command Sgt. Maj. Tim Meers during the ceremony. "We volunteered to wear this uniform."

Staff Sgt. Michael St. Jacques, who has deployed four times since 9/11, said the ceremony put the Missouri National Guard into a professional perspective.

"There's a strong sense of pride in my four tours of service," said Jacques, an optical lab technician for the 229th. "From my wide variety of experiences, I have an amazing sense of confidence in both my civilian life and future military challenges."

Sgt. Donald Landon, who deployed to Iraq in 2003, said he plans to write down his experiences in the journal.

"The deployment has greatly changed my life," said Landon, a communications specialist with the 229th. "I can write down memories and things I've come across and the lessons I've learned."

Landon's father, a Vietnam veteran, did not talk about his war experience until he was dying, Landon said. Landon plans to take a different route and will give the journal one day to his sons so they can see what he went through.

"I want to make sure I let my kids know about what I did and what I stood for," Landon said.

Sgt. Jessi Ross, a medic with the 229th, said the journal brought back memories of her deployments. She served in Qatar and Kuwait with the 205th Area Support Medical Company in 2002-2003, and in Iraq with the 206th Area Support Medical Company in 2006-2007.

"To look at all the things that have had such an impact on my life, it's surreal," Ross said. "I think it's a wonderful opportunity to collect my experiences and the history of my contribution. It'll be nice to sit down and show my family what I did and where I was."

On her second deployment, Ross was deployed with her husband, who was her boyfriend at the time.

"It was a good experience," Ross said. "We recognized that if we can make it through a deployment together, then we can make it through anything together. It'll be interesting to see what I write versus what my husband writes."

The project is the result of months of research and collection on the part of Guard historians and senior commands, said Capt. Alan Brown, the Missouri National Guard's command historian. Brown, of Jefferson City, held a similar ceremony for his Soldiers in Headquarters and Headquarters Company of the 110th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade in Kansas City.

"I told all my Soldiers to really use this journal as an opportunity to write down what they did and what they saw during their service," Brown said. "This isn't an honor for them, it's their legacy. I know years down the road my daughter will really appreciate having a record of what her father did during the war."

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