Soldiers ship out for training, Iraq
Guard families take part in big sendoff
By Cindy Corell/staff
ccorell@newsleader.com

WOODSTOCK — They stood in two lines along the long walls of the armory's drill room, while their families sat sweating in metal, folding chairs. Soldiers of Bravo Co., 3rd Battalion, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team were ready to leave for Camp Shelby, Miss., where they and those from four other companies would train for deployment to Iraq. It was a drill most of them had seen before. Most of them, like Evelyn Elliott of Churchville, knew what to expect. Her husband, Tony, was deployed to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for more than a year. Others in the Bravo Company spent nearly a year in Afghanistan in 2004. Practice may make perfect, but it doesn't make it any easier. "I just learned that you have to be independent if you're married to a guardsman," Elliott said. "You have to be strong, to be a soldier." "Today Virginia's infantry is moving out on a grand and noble mission," said Major Gen. Robert B. Newman Jr., adjutant general of the Virginia National Guard. He thanked in advance the families for the support they will show the troops during their yearlong mission. "There is no more supportive group of Virginians than you, the families of the guardsmen," he said. Lt. Col. John Epperly, battalion commander, was much more direct when he spoke to the families. A year from now, he said, there would be a reunion. "My best advice to you," he said, "is to keep your heads up and your eyes on the horizon because we will be home soon." Outside under a high-noon and blazing sun, soldiers hugged family members. Fathers held small children; sweethearts gazed with teary eyes. Brittany Lovell of Staunton held a flower while she watched her husband, Seth, stand in formation before boarding the bus. They were married June 9. Not far away stood her sister-in-law, Katy Herr Lovell. By Tuesday evening, she would watch her husband, Eli, leave the Winchester armory for the same deployment. He is Seth's twin. Also saying goodbye was Sgt. Randy Chandler of Port Republic. A veteran of the Cuba deployment, he was held back this time because of a health issue. He visited with several of the guardsmen, taking time with each. "I don't like this," he said. "I don't like this at all. Telling these guys goodbye is harder than it was telling my family goodbye when I left.

Cindy Corell/The News Leader Seth Lovell hugs his mother, Jan.