NY National Guard called up to Afghanistan

Thanks to the Albany Project for bringing this to our attention. Via the Democrat and Chronicle;

The largest single deployment of the New York Army National Guard since 2003 will send more than 1,700 soldiers to Afghanistan, according to an announcement Tuesday from the state Division of Military and Naval Affairs.

About 200 members of the 27th Brigade, headquartered in Syracuse but with members across upstate New York, will deploy as early as September for Operation Enduring Freedom. The rest will leave in the following six months to relieve the South Carolina Army National Guard's 218th Brigade.

Many thanks to our National Guard members for this sacrifice and work they will be doing in Afghanistan. This follows on the heels of their hard work here at home in NY State;

The announcement comes after a busy year at home for the Guard. Members were activated during last summer's floods in the Southern Tier, a winter storm that damaged scores of trees in Buffalo and powerful winter storms in the Hudson Valley and Oswego County.