Local unit prepares for deployment; support rallied

RED OAK — As August fast approaches, members of the F Company 334 BSB National Guard unit stationed in Red Oak are preparing to leave their families and homes for a year-long deployment to Afghanistan.

Capt. Mark Ratekin said the unit’s mission is to provide logistical support in terms of meals, and vehicle maintenance, to the Army’s 1-168th infantry battalion.

“Our purpose in life is to make sure the infantry division has whatever it needs to fulfill its mission,” Capt. Ratekin said.

F Company is comprised of not only Red Oak residents, but people from all over Southwest Iowa, and includes several truck drivers, mechanics, and cooks to facilitate the logistical support.

Nicknamed “The Red Bull Unit,” F Company came to Red Oak in 2003, and also has a detachment in Council Bluffs.

Their 12-month deployment starts in August, and Ratekin said he hopes the community shows its support to more than just the local families left behind.

Currently, there is a program underway involving National Guard units nationwide collecting coats to be given out in Afghanistan. Ratekin said they will also be accepting donations of school supplies to take overseas and distribute to Afghani children.

“Those humanitarian type of stuff is what we need,” Ratekin said. “It will help us bridge the gap with the Afghan people to let them know we are help to help them and stabilize their country.”

Before their deployment, Ratekin said Reservists are filling out needed paperwork and making sure their families have the support needed for the next 12 months.

Ratekin said the soldier’s attitudes are good.

“The morale is high,” he said. “This is part of the reason they signed up. They want to help a population that needs it.”

Ratekin said he appreciates the support the community has shown in the past, and reassures while much of the unit is deployed, there will still be a small detachment left behind.

“If the Governor needs us for something, we will have people here who can respond,” Ratekin said.

Beyond mobilization from the governor, the National Guard members also support the community by providing color guards, rifle detachments for funerals, and work with the Civil Air Patrol.