Troops to be welcomed home: Organizers hope to see U.S. 59 lined with supporters

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FILE PHOTO: Jordyn Aisenbrey, 1, waves a flag as she watches the welcome home ceremony for the Ohio National Guard Battery B, 1-134th FA unit, from Piqua, Ohio, at Piqua High School on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2008. The unit arrived home following a one-year overseas deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Aisenbrey was greeting her dad, U.S.Army Spc. Sobert Aisenbrey. The Aisenbreys are from Fort Recovery, Ohio..(AP Photo/Mike Ullery, Piqua Daily Call)

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WORTHINGTON — Police officers, firefighters and citizens will gather Friday to welcome home soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 51st Field Artillery unit of the Army National Guard.

The unit, which includes soldiers from Marshall and the surrounding areas, landed at Fort McCoy in Wisconsin March 28 after spending more than a year in Iraq.

A convoy of buses carrying the soldiers, escorted by fire trucks, squad cars and Patriot Riders, is scheduled to leave Worthington around noon and head up U.S. 59 toward Marshall. Plans for citizens to line the road with flags and banners are underway, and the public is invited to attend, but with the buses coming from Wisconsin, the exact timing of when the buses will hit Worthington is uncertain.

Several cities along U.S. 59 are planning their own roadside greetings, including Fulda and Slayton. Murray County firefighters and ambulance crews have been informed and many are hoping to show their support, either by sending a truck down to Worthington to join the motorcade or to stand by the side of the road with signs and flags.

To keep people informed about when to expect the motorcade, citizens are asked to keep an eye on the Daily Globe Web site. KJOE 106.1 FM and US104.3 FM will also give updates on the motorcade’s progress.

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