Soon-to-be-closed bases in Germany celebrate troops’ return

[unhappycamper]

Sgt. Ronald Steudle hugs his wife, Sara, and 10-month-old son, Ronald, following his return from Iraq to Darmstadt, Germany, late Thursday night. In the background at right are Spc. Nathan Hamson, his wife, Breanna, and son, Richard. The Darmstadt base is slated to close this year.


Soon-to-be-closed bases in Germany celebrate troops’ return
By Kevin Dougherty , and Matt Millham, Stars and Stripes
European edition, Saturday, January 26, 2008

A company of cops in three communities were out in force Thursday night, celebrating their return from Iraq with family and friends.

For two of the towns, Hanau and Darmstadt, there will be no more such nights. That’s not because of any excesses by members of the 127th Military Police Company. It’s due to the pending closure of the communities as part of the ongoing restructuring of U.S. forces in Europe, particularly in Germany.

Baumholder, the third military community with soldiers in the company, will remain open for at least a few more years.

In all, 146 soldiers in the company returned home Thursday.

The welcoming party in Hanau began gravitating to the gym on Pioneer Kaserne in the early evening. The time of the ceremony had slipped several times in the past few days, which is not unusual for such events.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=51929

[Rydz777]

1. Best wishes to the returning soldiers and their families and I

wish them a safe return to the United States. Maintaining army bases in Germany 63 years after the end of WWII and now long after German reunification is irrational. Germany is in the center of the EU and has enough wealth to support its own defense against whatever threat it may now perceive.