Medford guard unit leaves for new mission with same hopes for success 
by Mark Berglund
The Star News
March 11, 2010 —  The missions and the context of the latest deployment of a Medford-based National Guard unit will be different from past experiences. The emotions of parting and the sacrifices made by soldiers and families are the same.
The 273rd Sapper Company made its formal good-byes on Saturday morning at the Medford Area Middle School. The unit left for Fort McCoy on Monday. It will make final preparations there before leaving for Iraq in April and approximately one year of service with the United States Army. The departing elements of the unit include 40 soldiers.
The preparation for the deployment was led by First Lt. Kevin Decker. Decker was originally recruited to the unit by his father, Fred. The Medford Area Senior High graduate planned to use his guard service to pay for college, but he now has 18 years invested in service. This is Decker’s second deployment to Iraq. He served in a different company of the 724th during the previous deployment. Another big difference for Decker is what he leaves behind. He now has a 4-year-old son at home. “We lead two lives. It’s a delicate balance to fulfill your civilian and family obligations,” Decker said.
The unit has had about eight months to gear up for the deployment after first learning of the deployment possibility. The unit spent time in Florida earlier this winter with additional training.
The 273rd Sapper Company was formed in 2007 when the 724th Engineer Battalion was reorganized. When it was organized as Alpha Company, the Medford unit was deployed in March 2003 as part of a battalion-wide call-up in the opening weeks of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The 273rd will be replacing a unit scheduled to come home. The Medford unit will use the equipment already in Iraq and begin its year by completing any missions still on the table. “We’ve got plenty of missions lined up,” Decker said. “We will complete any missions they have left and then create our own for future operations.”
The 273rd will be serving alongside soldiers from Pennsylvania and Puerto Rico during its deployment. Much of the planning before the deployment was making sure the units brought the right combination of soldiers and skills for the missions ahead. The units will begin to mesh together in the coming weeks. “It’s a unique situation to be working with the other companies,” Decker said.
The most obvious difference from the previous deployment to Iraq is the big picture. Alpha Company left town in the first weeks of the invasion phase of the operation. Many of the tasks completed last time were geared toward establishing order. This mission will be more of a humanitarian operation with an Iraqi civil government in place.
“It will be interesting to go back and see the progress. They are getting the civilian infrastructure back after all these years. Our job is to play more of a supporting role. We can only hope for the best. We want them to take steps forward,” Decker said.
“The first time we went, we were gunning for bear. This time we will be in more of a mentoring role as the Iraqis become more self-sufficient.”
The average age of the soldiers in the 273rd is 24 years-old. The unit combines some veterans of previous deployments with younger members seeing their first trip overseas.
The 273rd is part of the larger 724th Engineer Battalion, which will see approximately 400 members deployed from units in Medford, Chippewa Falls, Hayward, Spooner and Superior. Medford has hosted an armory and Wisconsin National Guard unit since 1949. The unit began as an engineer company, but was reorganized as an armored unit in the late 1950s. It was called up in 1962 during the Berlin Crisis and served a year on active duty at Fort Lewis, Wash. It was later reorganized back into Company A. In addition to this full deployment, unit members have also augmented other units during deployments in recent years.
“There is definitely some personal pride in leading this unit,” Decker said. “I pretty much grew up here and graduated from high school and enlisted here.”
Saturday’s event included remarks from State Senator Russ Decker, Assembly Representative Mary Williams and Medford Mayor Mike Wellner. Karen Graff was there to represent United States Senator Russ Feingold. Williams noted a familiar face in the ranks as Lt. Decker worked in one of her restaurants in earlier days. “It is humbling to look over this little group of young people who will go out to fight for us,” Williams said.
Lt. Col. Dave O’Donahue, the commander of the 724th Engineer Battalion, spoke about the wait and sacrifices military families make during a deployment. He said the year will go by fast for the soldiers and community, but for families it will be a long year. He related a story of his first deployment when he was 39-years-old. His mother said it was the longest year of her life. “Extraordinary soldiers do not happen by chance. They come from extraordinary families,” O’Donahue said.
O’Donahue said he was proud of the service provided by northern Wisconsin soldiers. “Our nation has called and it got the right group of soldiers,” he said.
First Lt. Jared Siverling, who will serve as forward commander in Iraq, said the 273rd Sapper Company does not resemble the stereotypical rag-tag bunch which grows into an elite military unit depicted in so many war movies. He told the story of having Sgt. First Class Phillip Southworth making an early morning report to him on the 273rd status. Southworth told him it would be a great Army day because the unit was properly trained, equipped and highly motivated. The lieutenant then asked Southworth what his role was and Southworth answered, “You go to meetings.”
Siverling said he trusted the unit without reservation because of its focus on mission success and soldier welfare. He concluded by telling the audience, “we will see you in one year when we bring everyone home safely,” he said.

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