151st FA deployment, Marshall Report:

24 PGR members braved the early morning darkness, cold, and rain, and stood a flag line at the Marshall armory. As the troops left town, followed by more than a mile long procession of family members and PGRiders, they passed under a massive flag held out over Hwy 23 by the Marshall Fire Department, lit by spotlights in the early morning darkness. The Montevideo and Olivia units following soon after, after first passing through Granite Falls, where their fire department also lined the Hwy 23 median where it turned south to Marshall. Chris Dunsmore, ARC in charge of the Olivia armory PGR activities, had lined up a 15 mile long route where each mile crossroad had a unit with flashing lights for the Olivia troops to pass by on their way to the turn at Granite Falls.

Paul Ramsbey, RC for the Worthington sector, had organized things in Pipestone, where the units from Marshall, Montevideo, Olivia, and also Madison, were greeted by fire trucks lining the main drag through town, with many local patriots and PGR members standing a flag line on the south end of town, where Hwy 23 turned south to go to I 90.

Arriving at the Sioux Falls airport, about 40 PGR, Rolling Thunder, and American Legion Riders from Minnesota and South Dakota honored our deploying troops with a five hour long flag line, as bus load after bus load of troops arrived from western Minnesota. We were also honored to have with us two PGR members from Omaha, as well as Miss Teen Minnesota, Miss Jessica Scheu, representing our young peoples' support for the troops.

Here is a link of pictures taken at Marshall and Sioux Falls.



(@) Pictures from mission

Respectfully submitted,

Alan Peterson
Marshall Sector Ride Captain