Hundreds turn out to welcome Charlie Company home after serving in Afghanistan

Members of the Arizona National Guard Charlie Company 158th Infantry “Bushmasters” Battalion file onto the steps of the Yavapai County Courthouse Saturday morning, Sept. 7. The citizen-soldiers were on hand for a rally welcoming them home from a deployment in Afghanistan. (Cindy Barks/Courier)

Members of the Arizona National Guard Charlie Company 158th Infantry “Bushmasters” Battalion file onto the steps of the Yavapai County Courthouse Saturday morning, Sept. 7. The citizen-soldiers were on hand for a rally welcoming them home from a deployment in Afghanistan. (Cindy Barks/Courier)

Large raindrops Saturday morning did nothing to diminish the Yavapai County Courthouse plaza’s patriotic ambiance for the hundreds who turned out to welcome home returning Army National Guardsmen.

As the 100 or so rain-soaked Charlie Company citizen-soldiers marched in formation around the plaza, they were heralded with shouts of “Welcome home,” and “We love you.”

In his introductory remarks, Prescott Mayor Greg Mengarelli emphasized the community’s dedication to its patriotic functions.

“Welcome, Prescott. You never disappoint,” he said to the cheers of the crowd. “Thanks for being out here today. No rain will keep you from honoring our heroes, right?”

Although Charlie Company members come from all over the state to train in Prescott, Mengarelli told the young guardsmen seated behind him on the courthouse steps, “I want to say to you that I don’t care where your address is or where you live, you are our adopted sons. You are one of us, and we are so proud of you. Thank you for your service.”

The Saturday, Sept. 7, event was planned as a way for the community to show appreciation to the Charlie Company 158 Infantry “Bushmasters” Battalion, which returned to Arizona from Afghanistan in May.

Organizers had urged attendees to wear patriotic colors, and many of them complied. The crowd was full of red, white, and blue hats, T-shirts, and flags.

Daniel Schmidt, a sergeant first-class who trains the guardsmen for readiness at the Prescott Armory at Prescott’s Heritage Park, said events such as the one on Saturday help to let the guardsmen see the level of community backing.

“I don’t think the guys realize how much support they have,” Schmidt said. “It’s great that the City of Prescott did this.”

Major General Michael “Mick” McGuire (the Adjutant General) also referred to the importance of such events.

“The send-off and welcome-home ceremonies that we do for our Army and National Guard soldiers in Arizona is how we maintain a connection to our communities, our counties, our state, and our nation,” McGuire said during a morning gathering with the guardsmen at the Western Heritage Center on Whiskey Row.

Although the bulk of the guardsmen were from the Valley, several were also from Prescott.

Specialist Kaleb Johnston, a 21-year-old Prescott native, was among those returning.

Johnston, who graduated from Prescott High School in 2017, joined the National Guard soon afterward and was deployed for about a year, nine months of which were spent overseas in Afghanistan.

Johnston said he and other Charlie Company guardsmen served as personal security for officers working to train the Afghan forces.

“It was eye-opening for me,” Johnston said of his time in Afghanistan, adding that the time had caused him to “cherish what I have here.”

McGuire explained that the Arizona Guardsmen were deployed as a part of a security force in Kabul, Afghanistan, to provide regional security around the capital.

Saturday’s rally was a well-choreographed series of activities, which started with the Prescott Fire Department’s raising of a large U.S. flag along Gurley Street, and also included a gathering of the guardsmen at the American Legion Post 6, as well as another gathering at the Western Heritage Center.

The uniformed guardsmen then formed into lines on the plaza sidewalk along Whiskey Row for their march into the rally on the north side of the plaza.

Along with Mengarelli and McGuire, other speakers at the event included: Yavapai County Supervisor Craig Brown, who served as master of ceremonies; Supervisor Rowle Simmons; former Prescott Mayor Marlin Kuykendall; Keith Forte, Veterans Outreach manager in Sen. Martha McSally’s office; and Prescott VA Director Barbara Oemcke.

Brown told the crowd that the event had special meaning for him “and for all my brothers who came home from Vietnam. We didn’t quite have the welcome that these gentlemen deserve.”

To the guardsmen, Brown said, “I want to welcome home these Bushmaster warriors who just returned from Afghanistan. We want to make sure they understand we love them, and we’re thankful for what they do for us.”

Mengarelli then asked all Vietnam veterans in the crowd to stand while the crowd cheered. “They were faithful to the call … yet they did not receive a welcome,” Mengarelli said. “Let’s welcome these veterans home.”

State Veteran’s Manager for Arizona Pat Kuykendall, who was instrumental in planning the event, estimated that about 1,500 people attended throughout the several-hour-long event.


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