A unit of the Southwest Missouri National Guard will leave next week on a nearly year-long mission to Africa.
A deployment ceremony for the 294th Engineer Company of the Missouri Army National Guard will be held at Carthage High School on Wednesday, January 4 at 10 am. The public is invited.
Citing security concerns, the Missouri National Guard said it could not comment on the exact number of people deployed.
In a statement, the Missouri National Guard said the 294th will deploy to the Horn of Africa, which is the easternmost part of the African continent and includes all or part of Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia, Djibouti, and parts of Kenya, Sudan , South Sudan and Uganda.
“…Your mission will be to carry out vertical and horizontal construction projects with an emphasis on vertical construction to establish and maintain the infrastructure required to accomplish and sustain activities across the full range of military operations in the area,” the National Guard said. of Missouri in a statement. “These nationwide construction efforts are critical to contingency operations and will have a positive impact on real-world issues.”
Capt. Trey Maevers, commanding officer, said the 294 is a subcompany of the 203 Engineering Battalion.
He also said that during Wednesday’s ceremony, it is tradition for the oldest Soldier in the unit to carry the American flag throughout the deployment and return it safely, and the youngest Soldier has similar responsibilities with the US flag. Missouri state.
The National Guard also said it could not provide details on the length of the deployment, but Maevers said they will be there through fall/winter 2023.
