Cameron Minter, 5, of Hampton, waits for the bus carrying his uncle, Sgt. William 'Uncle Brad' Minter. View More Images from this story Visit the Photo Place

Crowds welcome troops back home

With police escort and cheering crowd, Army National Guard unit returns to Fredericksburg Armory

Date published: 2/5/2008

By RUSTY DENNEN

Clutching American flags, Barbara and Gary Wright and their 5-year-old granddaughter, Noel, stood on a downtown Fredericksburg corner yesterday with about a dozen others who had brought signs saying "Thank You" and "Welcome Home."

Along Princess Anne Street--from the Veterans of Foreign Wars post near U.S. 1 to downtown--clusters of people waited to cheer buses carrying 160 soldiers with the Virginia Army National Guard's Alpha Company, 116th Brigade Special Troops Battalion, fresh back from Iraq.

"We have a son in the Marines, who is in Iraq," said Wright, waiting for the buses to arrive from Fort Dix, their first stop in the states since leaving the Middle East last week.

"This is the biggest thing--for people to show support for the troops," Barbara added.

"This makes me think of Scott, my uncle," Noel said of her favorite Marine.

Clyde Hamrick and Margaret Niemann--both Virginia Department of Transportation workers in Spot-sylvania County--took their lunch time to be part of the unofficial welcoming committee.

Hamrick, 65, served in the guard unit, part of the 29th Infantry Division, and on active duty.

"We're proud of them, and that they are coming home alive," he said.

Niemann's daughter, Melinda, 24, flies helicopters for the Army in Florida and will soon be heading overseas.

Niemann said that though she has no direct connection with the returning soldiers, "I'm doing this for her; for everybody in the military."

Rebecca Semeia, 24, a University of Mary Washington student, sat outside Hyperion Espresso with others who had gathered under a canopy.

"I have friends who are in the service--my grandfather and father served. I'm showing my respect," she said.

The soldiers, mostly from the Fredericksburg area and Northern Virginia, are assigned to Fredericksburg Armory. They left for training at Fort Dix, N.J., January 2007 and served in combat and support roles in Iraq.

Around 1 p.m.--an hour later than expected--police sirens and motorcycle escorts announced the arrival of the buses, which had left New Jersey around 8:30 a.m.

Shouts and cheers rose up from the well-wishers as the convoy slowly rolled by.

Returning troops need time with their loved ones. Specifically, a romantic night together, says Bonnie DeLelys, innkeeper of the Richard Johnston Inn on Caroline Street. The inn is offering its seven plush rooms to the troops Tuesday and Wednesday nights--free. It's first-come, first served, and open only to soldiers with Virginia Army National Guard 116th Brigade Special Troops Battalion, just back from Iraq. DeLelys said she got a call from a spouse who wanted to reserve a room. "Then I thought, 'Why not give it to them free.' I think every business should do something for the boys coming home. People may not agree with the war and the president, but we've got to support the troops." The inn, at 711 Caroline St., is owned by Chuck and Jackie Leopold of Woodbridge. --Rusty Dennen

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Date published: 2/5/2008

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