The Missouri National Guard is preparing to welcome home soldiers that have been in Honduras since March, involved in building needed infrastructure and providing medical care.
The deployment was part of the U.S. Army South’s Beyond the Horizon-2012 mission. Task force commander Lieutenant Colonel Robert Jones of Cape Girardeau says his team also provided medical services at three locations.
“In the first med-ready we had 5,203 patients and they performed almost 6,000 procedures … and we had our second med-ready … and they saw a little over over 9,000 patients and they had just a little bit over 24,000 procedures.”
Soldiers also saw over 900 dental patients and veterinarians saw over 2,500 animals.
The mission also included a lot of construction work.
“We built two schools and built two clinics … one clinic being an eight room clinic.” Soldiers also helped build a 175 meter street in La Lima.
The mission included thousands of soldiers, sailors and airmen from 15 states and territories and multiple branches.
Jones and four other Missouri National Guard soldiers were also recognized in a closing ceremony last week, for their contributions in the mission. He and Captain Michael Paluczak of St. Louis, 1st Lieutenant Arturo Ibarra of Purdy, 1st Lieutenant Johnny Robey of Jefferson City, and Sergeant Major Scott Mayer of Lee’s Summit were awarded certificates of recognition signed by Major General Rene Arnoldo Osorio Canales, the Honduran chairman of the joint staff.
Jones says the Missouri Guard members will return in the next week.