Thanksgiving is going to be a time of transition for the soldiers of the New Mexico National Guard 515th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, as the battalion prepares to move its operations to a new location in Iraq.

The battalion was stationed in Belen before arriving in Iraq in August. Since then they’ve been based in Mosul.

“We are in a period of transition right now. All of our subordinate units have been moved to under another battalion and we are preparing to move,” said Lt. Colonel Kenneth Nava, who leads the battalion.

The soldiers can’t say where they’re going until they get there, but they’ve been working over the last couple of months to prepare for the troop drawdown in that country beginning in 2010.

Though in transition, the soldiers will spend Thanksgiving Day eating a special lunch. As is tradition, military leadership will serve the meal to their fellow soldiers.

“In keeping with this tradition, all of my master sergeants and above will be serving the lunch meal at the Diamondback Dining Facility to our soldiers,” Nava said, adding, “We will have to make due here in Iraq.”

Maybe surprising to some, it’s been raining a lot in Iraq lately. The soldiers have tried to barbecue and hold outdoor ceremonies, only to get rained out.

That’s given some of them more of an excuse to watch football, another Thanksgiving tradition.

“Back home I don’t consider myself a sports fanatic. Sure, I’ll watch football games and I’ll watch the World Series or basketball during March Madness, but I’m no fanatic,” Nava said. “I do have to admit that while here in Iraq, I have stayed up several times until 0330 and have also got out of the rack before 0400 to watch my Saints play.”

Even with a few of the comforts of home — a good Thanksgiving meal and football — the soldiers will miss their families. Nava asked that people back home not only have a great Thanksgiving but also remember soldiers in their prayers.

This page was published on November 24, 2009 at 9:43am and is filed under Archive.