Indiana National Guard Combat Team Alpha 1-151Team Avenger -- based in Linton -- recently posed in a bombed out soccer stadium in Iraq. (Submitted photo from the Indiana National Guard) [Order this photo]

There have been some changes in the way the soldiers will be debriefed and processed before they are released to spend time with their families when they return, according to Lt. Col. Ronald Westfall, commander of Task Force 1-151.

Approximately 140 Guardsmen comprise Alpha 1-151 Team Avengers from the Linton and Vincennes armories.

The local guard unit was activated Dec. 10, 2007 and deployed on Jan. 2 following a send-off celebration at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis.

They went to Fort Steward, Ga., for about a month of additional training before heading to Iraq.

While in the combat zone, the local troops have been escorting convoys and carrying out a variety of humanitarian missions.

In a recent announcement posted on the 1-151st website, Lt. Col. Westfall said that the Operations Order for the return of 76th Brigade have been received and each company has been briefed.

"While I cannot tell you our return dates due to Operational Security, I can tell you that the overall dates have not changed. Individual dates for Units continues to be somewhat fluid and could still change a little before we fly home, so as in previous deployments, be prepared for some last minute changes by a few days or so. The Brigade will fly back into the state over the course of several weeks and our units will be dispersed throughout that time period. It looks as though we will return in two main groups, with half of the Task Force in the first group and the remaining half in the second. The plan for after we return home hasn't changed much since my last update," he wrote.

There are several changes for the Guardsmen and their families compared to the way the return procedures went during the last return during the 2003-04 deployment by the unit

*There will be no welcome home ceremony at Indianapolis International Airport.

"The plan is for the Soldiers to land at the Indianapolis Airport and then be taken by bus to another location where they will be reunited with the families. This location has been identified as building 9 at Stout Field in Indianapolis, which is where the State Headquarters is located. It is at this location that you will be reunited with your Soldier for a 1-hour period. At the completion of that hour, the soldiers will be bussed directly to Camp Atterbury," Westfall stated.

*There will be no 48-hour pass for the soldiers upon returning home

" Soldiers will be bussed directly to Camp Atterbury to begin their demobilization process. This is expected to last from 3-5 days or until complete. Once the unit has completed demobilization, then the Soldiers will be released on Terminal Leave," the commander said.

* Family visitation at Camp Atterbury -- located near Edinburgh -- is discouraged.

"The demobilization schedule is designed to be extremely busy in an effort to get the Soldiers home as soon as possible. This means that the Soldiers will not have any available time to spend with family members 'after hours'. Since they are also still on Title 10 orders and undergoing demobilization, they will not be allowed to leave Camp Atterbury. Based on this, the families are encouraged not to come to Camp Atterbury as your soldier will not have the opportunity to spend time with you. The Post will be a very busy place as several units will be trying to complete demobilization at the same time. If the timing is such that your soldier is scheduled to be undergoing demobilization over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, the current plan is that they will remain at Camp Atterbury and continue to complete the process. They will not be given a holiday pass. Therefore, I would encourage you to develop an alternate plan for celebrating Thanksgiving with your Soldier should he/she fall into this timeframe. The key thing to remember is that all of us will be home for Christmas and that is the best present any of us could get," according to Lt Col. Westfall.

The commander noted that once the units have completed the demobilization process at Camp Atterbury, the soldiers will be bused to the Armory that is the closest to their 'Home of Record', which is a change from previous plans, he said.

This will allow for the Guardsmen to enjoy the return at the Armory based the closed to the their actual homes, rather than the Armory they are assigned.

"This is good news for the Soldier and their family. Since we deployed as a Task Force, there are many Soldiers that are assigned to units that are far away from where they live. For example, I have Soldiers assigned to Jasper that live in Richmond and Ft. Wayne. So instead of being bused to Jasper and having to make you drive there to pick them up, they can choose to be sent to Richmond or Ft. Wayne. While this is an opportunity for the local community to officially welcome home their Soldiers, it might be easier to wait until the Freedom Salute ceremonies that will be held in February. The timing of their initial return will be a little difficult to schedule as the exact dates will not be known until after the plane arrives and the Soldiers begin the demobilization process. So if your Family Readiness Groups plan on doing something big it needs to be as flexible as possible with timing."

Westfall stressed that the soldiers will not be permitted to be picked up at Camp Atterbury.

Linton Armony Family Readiness Group coordinator Margaret Amos says plans are underway for a special ceremony at the Linton National Guard Armory to fomally welcome the soldiers back home to Greene, Knox, Sullivan, Owen and other surrounding counties. Details will be announced closer to the event.

There are also plans to conduct a major Welcome Home Ceremony -- similar to the Departure Ceremony held at the old RCA Dome in Indianapolis. This time the new Lucas Oil Stadium will be the venue.

The event is tentatively set for January 24, 2009.

" It will be a Drill Weekend for the Soldiers, which means it is mandatory that they attend. I look for this to be a Grand Event that will give your Soldier the Honor and Gratitude they deserve after this deployment. I encourage you to attend," Westfall noted.

The IDT weekend drills will be held in February and the focus will be the Freedom Salute Awards.

"This is a program designed for the Soldiers and the families to formally recognize them for their service. Soldiers will receive their end of tour awards as well as the Freedom Salute package that goes to each soldier and their family. The intent of this program is to involve the families and communities. each company will hold their ceremony on a different time or day and they are encouraged to invite their local civic leaders and businesses that contributed to the support of the Families throughout the deployment," he said.

Westfall reminded the families back home in Indiana that it's time to think about some of the logistics of support, such as mail to the soldiers.

"All of you need to make a mark on the wall of Oct. 18 as the final date to mail any care packages. With the delay in shipping, anything mailed after that date may or may not make it here in time to be received by the soldier. So I ask all of you to complete any of your last minute mailings no later than the (October) 18th. I would not mail any letters past the Oct 30 as well," he added.

Col. Westfall also talked about the continuation of the mission of the 1-151 Guardsmen.

"We continue to focus on our every day mission here in Iraq. Your soldiers continue to safely escort logistic convoys all over Iraq as they set the standard for other units to follow. We continue day to day business as usual," he said.