Back Home!, June 26

Nearly 200 Oregon Army National Guard Soldiers of 1st Battalion, 186th Infantry Regiment, 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team, returned to Oregon, Wednesday, June 24, following an overseas deployment to Afghanistan. The 1-186th Infantry Battalion is headquartered in Ashland with companies based in Medford, Roseburg, Grants Pass, Coos Bay and St. Helens. The Soldiers arrived in Medford via chartered flights from Fort Hood, Texas, where they completed administrative and medical demobilization processing. The first flight arrived Wednesday morning with nearly 125 Soldiers that were bused to their local armories (50 Soldiers returned to Grants Pass, 60 Soldiers returned to Roseburg, and about 15 Soldiers returned to Coos Bay) where their families greeted them. Another flight arrived later in evening with approximately 70 more Soldiers who greeted their families at the Medford Armory. One group of about 70 Soldiers from the 1-186th Infantry Battalion returned early to Oregon last month, May 5. A formal demobilization ceremony is scheduled to recognize the battalion for their overseas service, Aug. 8 at 10:00 a.m. at the South Medford High School stadium.