There were plenty of smiles in Auburn Saturday as 20 members of the 105th Military Police Company returned home to Central New York after seven long months in Iraq.
Private First Class Jordan Hamilton was happy to be reunited with his two and a half year old son Trevor. "It was hard to be away from home and him as long as we were but the unit its a whole other family so you get through," he says.
Thanks to the speeded up withdrawl of U.S. troops from Iraq, Lt. Col. Arthur Zegger says the deployed soldiers actually got to come home a little earlier than expected. "Originally it was supposed to be June than they backed that up to December 15th. Than our good luck came through and they were back Thanksgiving night to Ft. Dix," he says.
In Iraq soldiers with the 105th helped train the Iraqi Police Force.
Sgt. Randy Hill says it is time now for the Iraqis to take control of their own security. "I feel that they are ready. It is their country, their issues. I feel that we have learned that is how they do it. It's not America it's Iraq," he says.
This is the second deployment for soldiers with the 105th. The company was one of the first National Guard units to deploy to Iraq back in 2003.
