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Isle Guard reports
for duty
Families bid goodbye today
to the Iraq-bound 29th Brigade,
which includes two Vietnam vets
Vietnam war veterans Clyde Maeda and Frank Caitano are among the 2,000 citizen soldiers of Hawaii's 29th Infantry Brigade required to report for duty today to prepare for another war, this time in Iraq.
Caitano is a 53-year-old sergeant, and Maeda, 55, a staff sergeant. They are the most senior members of Hawaii's citizen soldier force -- the largest activated since World War II.
Thirty-six years ago, Maeda had to pull KP duty at Schofield Barracks while other members of the Hawaii Army National Guard's 29th Infantry Brigade stood in formation at a farewell ceremony at Kuroda Field in Waikiki as they prepared for combat duty in Vietnam.
Caitano was 18 and was on convoy duty with the 101st Airborne Division in Bien Hoa in 1969 when members of the 29th Brigade stepped off a military transport to begin their Vietnam War tour of duty.
"I saw the Hawaiian flag," said Caitano, now a member of the brigade's 29th Support Battalion. "I yelled, 'Hey, where are you guys from?' I heard some answer back in pidgin, and I knew for sure," Caitano said.
"I didn't really expect it then," said Maeda, who enlisted in the Hawaii Army National Guard shortly after graduating from Farrington High School in 1967. "And I didn't expect to be called up now."
In Vietnam, Maeda served with Troop F, 1st Logistics, in Bien Hoa for six months.
Maeda is philosophical about his next combat assignment in Iraq. "We signed up, and it's one of those things that could happen."
Caitano served two tours in Vietnam, beginning with the 101st Airborne Division from 1969-70, followed by a year with the 25th Infantry Division.
Maeda had joined the 29th Infantry Brigade at the urging of a friend after graduating from high school. "I left for basic training in November." Maeda returned in March. "On May 23 we were activated. That's a date I will remember forever."
Family members of the 29th Brigade's 100th Battalion planned to takes their spouses and family members to Fort Shafter Flats as early as 6 this morning and hang around as long as possible to savor their goodbyes.
Those feelings of aloha and sadness were expected to be repeated this morning in Army National Guard armories and Army Reserve centers throughout Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, the Mariana islands, California, Oregon and Minnesota.
Lt. Col. Alan Ostermiller, the 100th Battalion's new commander, spent the weekend in American Samoa meeting with the 200 soldiers he commands and their family members.
Before he left on Friday, Ostermiller, a 1982 Kamehameha Schools graduate, said it was his belief that "we need to affirm our commitment to do our best to bring those soldiers back safe and sound and to ensure that those families there know that we care."
Today is a far cry from 1968, when the 29th Brigade was last called to combat duty in Vietnam and only 40 percent of the unit went to war. By January, National Guard leaders believe, the 29th Brigade, with the reinforcement of citizen soldiers from other states, will move into Iraq with about 3,500 soldiers. The brigade could be deployed to Iraq by February.
The 29th Separate Infantry Brigade is the largest unit in the Hawaii Army National Guard. Since 1995 the brigade has been one of the nation's 15 elite enhanced readiness brigades. This meant that the brigade was trained and equipped to deploy within 90 days of a federal call-up.
The brigade consists of units that span the state. Its Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 229th Military Intelligence Company, and 29th Support Battalion are located at Kalaeloa, formerly known as Barbers Point Naval Air Station. The bulk of the 227th Engineer Company's heavy engineering equipment is located in Pearl City. The brigade's 1st Battalion, 487th Field Artillery, is in Wahiawa.
A combat engineering detachment is situated at Keaau on the Big Island.
The units of the brigade's 2nd Battalion, 299th Infantry, are spread throughout the state. The battalion's headquarters and headquarters company are located in Hilo, with a scout platoon detached to Kaunakakai on Molokai. The bulk of the battalion's Alpha Company is located on Kauai in Kapaa, with a detachment in Hanapepe.
Bravo Company of the battalion is split between the communities of Kealakekua and Honokaa on the Big Island. Charlie and Delta Companies are located in Kahului, Maui, and Wahiawa.
Once called to active duty, the brigade would be augmented by the 1st Battalion, 184th Infantry, of the California Army National Guard; the 100th Battalion, 442nd Infantry, of the U.S. Army Reserve (with units from Oahu, Guam, and American Samoa); Troop F, 82nd Cavalry, of the Oregon Army National Guard; and Echo Battery E of 216th Air Defense Artillery of the Minnesota Army National Guard.
