EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – Over 3,300 Army soldiers were reunited with their families Saturday morning, April 6 in a joyful ceremony at the Strike Parade Field at Fort Bliss after being deployed in Eastern Europe the past 9 months.
The 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division were re-deployed to Fort Bliss after a nine-month rotation to Poland, Germany and Bulgaria in support of the US. commitment to its NATO allies and partners as part of Operation European Assure, Deter, and Reinforce.
The 2nd Brigade touched down at Fort Bliss shortly after 8 a.m. on a windy and chilly Saturday morning.
Just a few miles east of their landing, their families gathered at the Strike Parade Field anxiously waiting for their arrival.
“I’m super excited. We’ve been on rotating deployments so it’ll be nice. It’s been 417 days since we’ve been state-side together so I’m super excited,” said Aaron Chapman, a soldier himself and fiancé of Capt. Emily Reilly, commander of Charlie Battery, 4th Battalion, 27th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade.
“Taking a break from the kids (laughs) and him spending time with them and building more memories with him,” said Hillary Tamayo, when asked what she was most excited about as she waited with her three children for the arrival of her husband Staff Sgt. Tamayo.
“You don’t realize how much you’re going to miss them, especially husbands. They irritate you, and then they leave and then you miss them irritating you. So I am looking forward to him irritating me again,” said Carly Poole, an active-duty soldier herself, who has just navigated her and her husband Staff Sgt. Rodarte’s first deployment as a family with two children.
The 2nd Brigade was dropped off across the parade field, covered and hidden by the eight buses that drove them to the parade grounds.
The families gathered, joined in an excited chant: “Move that bus!”
The buses began driving away, revealing the over 3,300 soldiers lined up in formation, and they began marching toward the field. After being dismissed from the formation, family and soldiers rushed to each other’s arms.
“It’s like weight just falling off. It’s like we reached the mountain and now we’re coming down,” said Staff Sgt. Rodarte after being reunited with his wife and two children.
“I’ve just been excited to actually get back and be able to plan our wedding and be with him,” said Capt. Emily Reilly after rejoining her fiancé and her parents.
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