Send off Ceremony 724 Engineer Batallion

State, local and military officials will honor about 400 Wisconsin Army National Guard Soldiers in four separate send-off ceremonies Saturday and Sunday before they depart for their tour of duty in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The Soldiers are members of the 724th Engineer Battalion headquartered in Hayward, with units in Superior, Spooner, Chippewa Falls, Medford, Tomahawk, and Rhinelander.

Following local sendoff events, the troops will report to Fort McCoy for several weeks of mobilization training before departing for Iraq.

A battalion-sized send-off ceremony will be held when mobilization requirements have been completed.

All events are open to the public.