Saint Paul to Iraq II February 10th, 2009

On February 10th , 2009, over 1,000 members of the 34th Red Bull Infantry attended their official deployment ceremony in the Roy Wilkins Auditorium in Saint Paul.  With more than 5,000 people in the auditorium and another 3,000 in an overflow viewing room, a tremendous audience of friends, family members, and dignitaries were present to offer support and appreciation to these brave men and women of the Minnesota National Guard.  After training stateside for several months, they will head to Iraq and lead operations in eight of Iraq's eighteen provinces, eventually leading an estimated 16,000 coalition forces.  The mission is unprecedented for the modern Minnesota National Guard and a testament of their skills, training, and talents.

Following the ceremony, Serving Our Troops and an army of volunteers hosted a steak dinner for these soldiers and their guests.  With more than 8,000 steaks served this dinner was the largest of its kind ever in the history of the Saint Paul RiverCentere - maybe even the largest in the City of Saint Paul.

This event was made possible through the support of numerous sponsors, donors, and nearly 1,000 volunteers from across the community who pitched in to deliver a truly deserved message of thanks and support to the soldiers and their family members.

Another proper send-off from the Serving Our Troops team, Saint Paul style.

A special thanks to all of our volunteer photographers including Bill Mahaffey from Bostego.com.  To view Bill's photos, please click HERE