(Host) Fifty members of the Vermont Army National Guard are expected to return from Afghanistan in early September. They were part of an infantry unit deployed a year ago to help train the Afghan Army.
VPR’s Steve Zind reports.
(Zind) Unlike some National Guard members serving in Iraq who had their tours extended, Vermont Army Guard members in Afghanistan will be coming home on time. Lieutenant Veronica Saffo of the Vermont Guard says the date of their return depends on when they can they can be flown out of Afghanistan, but it’s expected to be in the next two weeks.
(Saffo) “We anticipate a very smooth transition. They were in Afghanistan for just under a year, about one year total that they’ve been gone. Of course, the families are just about at their peak of anticipation.”
(Zind) Saffo says the men will arrive at Fort Carson, Colorado where they’ll spend up to a week undergoing medical checkups and filing paperwork. After that, they’ll return to Vermont.
For Vermont Public Radio, I’m Steve Zind.