Friends and family members filled a patriotic ceremony at this VFW post Sunday to say goodbye. A bittersweet mother's day for many of the soldiers including Sergeant Karina Medina.
Monday she'll leave her two year old son behind as she heads to Kuwait in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
"I've been trying to explain to him that mommy has to go to work and she's going to be leaving in a plane, and he's not going to be able to see me," Sgt. Karina Medina924th Transportation Detachment said.
The reservists are all based in Fresno as part of the 924th transportation detachment. They'll be in Kuwait for one year where they'll be in charge of moving equipment in and out of Iraq.
Sergeant Christine Romo is also leaving behind a four year old daughter.
"We've just been going everywhere she wants to go. She loves to shop, so I've been shopping like crazy. I've been taking her to the zoo, the amusement park, everywhere she wanted to go, we went," 924th Transportation Detachment Sgt. Christine Romo said.
The soldiers say they're ready but also a bit nervous. And so, too, are their mothers who spent this Mother's Day filled with both pride and anxiety.
"Just not knowing, where he's going to be. I want to know everything, what the living conditions are, what the address is, what's the city like, what's going on in the city. I just want to know everything that's going on. And it's just so hard because we don't know anything so far," Jennifer Fleming said.
Despite fear of the unknown these soldiers and their families made the most of this Mother's Day giving and receiving this strong show of support. And eagerly awaiting the next round of cheers upon their return.
The 924th previously deployed to Iraq in 2006 so for several soldiers, this is a first deployment.
They'll report for final processing Monday before heading overseas.
