National Guard Troops start coming home

by: Jason Springer

Sat May 23, 2009 at 08:04:39 PM EDT

A plane carrying nearly 400 members of the Guard's 50th Infantry Brigade Combat Team is scheduled to arrive Monday morning at McGuire Air Force Base in Burlington County.

The soldiers are the first to return from the largest overseas deployment of the New Jersey National Guard since World War II.

They will arrive in groups of 300 to 400, landing every few days. The entire complement should be back in New Jersey by the time a special parade is held in their honor on June 14, officials said.

The first returning group includes men and women from three units: The 250th Brigade Support Battalion, Delta Company out of West Orange; the 114th Infantry Battalion, Delta Company, Woodstown , and the 154th Quartermaster Company, Sea Girt.

The Memorial Day plane troops are expected to arrive at McGuire Air Force Base by late morning, said 1st Sgt. David Moore, a Fort Dix spokesman. They will be bussed to Fort Dix where their families will be waiting at the National Guard training and development center, officials said.

The demobilization is the first step in a $3 million "reintegration program," for New Jersey Guardsman. State adjutant general Maj. Gen. Glenn K. Rieth called it "one of the most comprehensive efforts ever undertaken to support troops as they make the transition from warrior to parent, spouse, student, employee and member of their community."

The program includes employment, financial and marital counseling. There will be job fairs, free tuition, marriage enrichment seminars and special rates on health insurance.

Rieth said a key component of the reintegration program is mental health screening. In the first three months after their return, the troops will be screened at least three times for post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injuries and other mental health or emotional issues.