80th DIV soldiers get some press

I can't tell you how happy this makes me. My husband is a critical part of the mission to get us out of there and they are AHEAD OF SCHEDULE. Can I even hope that they'll be home sooner than we thought?

Richmond-based 80th Division reports progress training Iraqi soldiers
By
Rob Richardson
NBC12 News
Wednesday, November 30, 2005


In
President Bush's address Wednesday morning he spoke extensively about the
training of Iraqi soldiers by US troops. In large part, that job is being
undertaken by hundreds of soldiers with the Richmond -based 80th
Division.

The Richmond based 80th Division trains soldiers and for
the last four months, they've been in Iraq, making progress as part of the US
exit strategy, teaching Iraqis to protect their own country.
Since August,
more than 700 army reserve soldiers with the 80th Division including 80 from
Richmond have been training Iraqi troops. Col. Paul Benenati, 80th Division EOC
Commander says, “Progress has been significant and the morale of our soldiers is
very, very high."
The troops began their own training this summer in Indiana,
where they anticipated complications, like language barriers. So, they worked
with Iraqis supplied by the Department of Defense. In Iraq now four months,
training is ahead of schedule.In Iraq now, all eyes are on elections set for
December 15th. Then, sometime next fall, solders start coming home, where they
may eventually help train US troops. Now and over the next several months, 80th
Division soldiers begin cycling out of Iraq for two weeks of R&R.