Send-off for 144th July 5

An official deployment ceremony for Jackson County’s hometown heroes, the 144th Army National Guard Transportation Company, is set for Sunday, July 5, beginning at 10 a.m. The 144th will be deployed July 8 for training in Indiana, before shipping out for active duty in Iraq. They are expected to be gone a year.
The ceremony will take place at the National Guard Armory on U.S. Highway 90, west of Marianna. The event is sponsored by the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce, the VFW Auxiliary and American Legion Auxiliary. The public is encouraged to attend.
On the day of the ceremony, event sponsors will serve breakfast and lunch for the troops and their families,  and families will be served again on the morning of their actual deployment.
Donations from the community are welcome in offsetting meal and refreshment costs, according to a press release from the chamber. Contributions may be made to the to the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce 144th deployment fund.
“The Jackson County Chamber of Commerce is proud to continue its tradition of coordinating activities and rallying support from the local community for our troops as they deploy or return from a deployment,” the chamber press release said.
The local unit hasn’t deployed overseas since 2004, when it was sent to Iraq for more than a year.
According to company commander 1st Lt. Vincent Crump,  76 of the 134 soldiers in the company will be deployed. Those in maintenance fields will not be needed in the deployment to Iraq.