More than 500 soldiers with the Pennsylvania National Guard’s 28th Infantry Division were honored during a deployment ceremony today at Zembo Shrine Auditorium.

Soldiers with the division’s Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion are leaving their homes and families for a year-long deployment to the Middle East. They will serve in support of Operation Spartan Shield and U.S. Central Command’s mission of increasing regional security and stability in support of enduring U.S. interests.

“As you can see the world is a pretty volatile place right now but the presence of American soldiers helps to calm things wherever that volatility happens to be,” said Maj. Gen. Mark McCormack, the commanding general of the 28th Infantry Division. “We have an interest in the region, we have partners in the region and our deployment is to reassure partners.”

The soldiers and their families were praised for their dedication to duty and selfless service. McCormack shared words of encouragement during the ceremony.

Pennsylvania National Guard senior leaders, including Maj. Gen. Mark Schindler, the Adjutant General of Pennsylvania, were in attendance. Also in attendance were partners from the Lithuanian army, Pennsylvania’s partner in the National Guard Bureau’s State Partnership Program.

During the ceremony, the division’s colors, or a rallying flag, were cased and furled which formally signals that HHBN is ready for their mission. The colors will be uncased when they take authority of their mission when they arrive in the Middle East.

There, they will become the headquarters element of Task Force Spartan, the U.S. military posture in Southwest Asia that aims to strengthen U.S. defense relationships and build partner capacities.