Local guardsmen say goodbyes

Clutching camouflage-covered teddy bears and tissue boxes, more than 100 family members and friends said their goodbyes yesterday to a National Guard unit based in Bloomington.\n"Load Up!" Capt. Gordon Campbell yelled, as 25 soldiers gathered their duffel bags, kissed their wives, and boarded the bus that will take them to Ft. Dix, N.J. They will be stationed there for up to 90 days before their tour of the Middle East begins. \nHomemade signs with magic markers wished the soldiers farewell. It will be about another 18 months until the members of the 2nd Battalion, 150th Field Artillery Regiment are reunited with their families. \nThis is the first time the battalion has been mobilized since World War II, although some soldiers have taken previous tours of Iraq. The other 125 members of the unit will join them next month in New Jersey. \nThursday evening's departure ceremony ran like military clockwork. Audience members heard brief speeches from politicians, such as Mayor Mark Kruzan, and state Sen. Vi Simpson, D-Bloomington. Each speaker talked about duty, freedom and democracy. \n"We're not politicians," said Major Patrick Thibodeau, who is involved with the training of the battalion. "If the government believes this is where we should be, we'll go there." \nThe soldiers are leaving their air-conditioned homes for temperatures that could be as hot as 130 degrees. In the Middle East, they'll be lucky to get a mattress, usually sleeping on a canvas cot in a two-man tent. \nBut Second Capt. Chris Johanningsmeir, Scott County resident and father of two, said he is excited for his military tour to begin.\n"I'm looking forward to being in the land of Abraham and seeing sites from the Old Testament," Johanningsmeir said. "I'm hoping I can bring peace and democracy to the land."\nHe's not taking a copy of the Bible with him because he said the sand, dust and sweat would ruin the book. Instead, he's put a Bible study program on his laptop computer.\nMarried for five-and-a-half years to his wife Jennifer, the couple doesn't think the National Guard has put a strain on their relationship. They think it has made them stronger. With a 2-year-old son and a 4-year-old daughter, they tried not to burden their children with too much information. \n"I tell them that Daddy's doing Army stuff," Jennifer Johanningsmeir said. "We told them that we're going to Disney World as soon as Daddy gets back"