Farewell 2007...

This was originally sent in an email on December 31...

As 2008 quickly approaches, I wanted to send out a little update on Josh's deployment.  

We finally received orders on December 17.  Josh's unit is scheduled to report for active duty on January 20.  There are a couple of dates prior to that he will also need to report - drill early n the month and a few days just before.  They will be having a formal send-off ceremony on January 16, which we will all be attending as well.

The school planned a wonderful ceremony for Josh on December 19.  Several poems, books and readings, along with a really nice song that the music teacher wrote and arranged.  My sister put it best  - we were expecting "Yankee Doodle Dandee" and instead heard "God Bless the USA".  Hearing the children sing was very moving and emotional.  It was a very nice send-off.  All of the kids left the gym, marching to one of the company's cadence marches.

Christmas was very nice for us.  We spent the weekend before Christmas and Christmas Day in NY.  We are currently visiting Josh's family in Virginia and will be here for a few more days.  

I will be out of work until around January 28 to spend time with Josh and then to establish a routine for me.  Trying to maintain a balance between work and home has been difficult in the past few months.  I know that in the next year, there will be hard days at work, and to allow for a "normal setting, I am asking that you not email me at my work account, but rather my hotmail (debacigalupi@hotmail.com).  We truly appreciate everyone's words and support, but it makes it difficult to focus on work when I see the emails at work, especially considering my spring workload.

Please keep Josh and his unit in your thoughts and prayers. 

Happy New Year!  May it be safe, healthy, happy and peaceful!  

"The Date" and Some Information to Share

This was originally sent in an email on November 17...

Josh returned from another three weeks of training on October 26th, and completed his November training the following weekend!  It's an interesting time and hard to describe in words.  On one hand, it's wonderful to have him home, but at the same time, it's another step closer to him leaving.  On the other hand, the quicker we move through everything, the closer we are to having him back here.  Trying to decide which is better isn't always that easy.

In regards to the "date", we are still waiting for official orders for his deployment.  We were told 90 days out was when we would have them, and now maybe 60, but who knows!  Frustrating?  Yes, very much so.  (Remember I am a planner... the ambiguity drives me insane!)  We have a good indication of the date - roughly mid-late January, but the specific date is still a little fuzzy - a couple of different days have been mentioned, but all fall within a couple of days of each other.  So for now, we refer to it as "the date"!   We do know that he will be at Ft. Bragg (living in a tent) for a couple of months before leaving for Afghanistan for 10 months.

Unfortunately, we have also found out that the will be leaving for another 10 day training.  He will be gone November 30 - December 9, again in Fort Drum.  We know that the training is important, but the on again, off again routine is getting old.  We try to stay upbeat about it all, but it is frustrating especially at this time of year.  

We had the opportunity to go out to dinner with the other men in Josh's truck the first weekend of this month.  There are four of them in the truck, three of which are married and the fourth has a girlfriend.  It was a nice time.  They all get along well, joke around, laugh, etc., which is comforting to see knowing that they will be each other's right hand when they are over there.  Sgt. Bryon Gridley, Bryan Coe, and Bryon Hulsizer round out Josh's truck.  They are trying to convince Josh to change his name to Bryan, but it is not catching on!

Through all of this, we have been given the opportunity to meet a lot of new and wonderful people.  All of whom have been very supportive and have helped us to understand the information and share some insight on the deployment.  We continue to learn new things... especially for me, the many meanings of the acronyms that are used (and I thought higher ed and student affairs was full of them!).  It really is like learning a foreign language.  

Josh has decided that his last day of teaching will be on December 21.  It works out well for his classroom because the children will come back to school in January with a sub from the start and not Josh for a few days, and then a sub.  This also gives him a month without the added stress of school.  We are both very lucky to have such supportive work environments.  Due to my busy schedule in the past few months, I was given the opportunity to hire a temp. service worker.  She is a recent college graduate who is interested in event planning and has been a blessing!  She will be filling in for me while I am out in January.  It makes it easier for me to leave, knowing that I should return to a normal workload, and easier for the office knowing that the continuity is there within the position.

Josh celebrated his birthday last week with his entire family from Virginia coming up to NY for the occasion.  We had a wonderful time and look forward to traveling down there for Thanksgiving.  We, along with Jennifer, and her boyfriend, are running the Alexandria Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning.  A five mile run through Alexandria... should be fun!  Rumor has it that there is a little "family trophy" being created.  

We are making a list of all the things we want to o in the time between now and then or when we look at each other and say, "what do you want to do today?"  Simple, crazy, or anything, but camping is not an option.  Josh will be getting his full share of the "tent life" soon after he leaves.

Your continued thoughts and support are most appreciated.  Happy Thanksgiving to all... enjoy!

October Training

This was originally sent out in an email on October 8...

Josh left on October 5 for another three weeks of training at Ft. Drum.  For those of you in the area, you may have seen the coverage in the newspapers and/or on TV about the soldiers preparing for deployment.  For those of you outside of the Central New York area, here are the links.

Syracuse Post Standard - Guarding Freedom - October 7, 2007

WSTM NBC News - October 2, 2007

Binghamton Press - NY Guardsmen Train - October 1, 2007

We still do not have an official departure date for January.  We are anticipating that information the end of the month or in early November, when hopefully, he will receive his official orders.  It's been a long waiting game for the actual date.

I spoke with Josh very early this morning and for only a few minutes.  I know some of you requested an address, but they are not providing one for him during this training.   He is doing well.  They are busier this time, in comparison to June, but still doing some of the same things that they have already done.  A lot of paperwork to process and boxes to check for the Soldier Readiness segment.  

School is going well for him.  While he has not told the students in his classroom about the deployment, he did share the information with the parents via a letter prior to the start of the school year.   Some parents did share with their son or daughter what was going to happen.  Last week he spoke to the kids about being gone for three weeks.  Being only five, it certainly is hard for them to understand what is going on.  Some of their questions and comments can be entertaining, which always seems to lighten the mood.  He also had two of his three observations last week, both of which went very well.  He only has one more to complete for the tenure process prior to leaving.  The school and his team continue to be very supportive.  

We are looking forward to spending some nice time together for his birthday and the holidays.  I will let you know when we receive any additional information.  

Breaking the News to Family and Friends

This was originally sent out in an email on August 20...

Josh and I found out in February that his National Guard unit was scheduled to deploy to Afghanistan toward the end of this year.  When we were initially told, information was prefaced with "if we go", but unfortunately within two months the terminology shifted to "when we go".  At this time, his unit is slated to mobilize in January 2008 for two months in the U.S., and then they will be sent somewhere in Afghanistan in the Spring for 10 months, with an anticipated return of January/February 2009.  Josh is leaving again in October for another three week training and we are expecting to receive the official orders at that time.  His enlistment is through January 31, 2009, so once he returns and goes through the post-deployment process, he will have fulfilled his commitment to the Guard.

It was announced on the Syracuse area news stations on July 31, much to our shock, as we weren't expecting the announcement to happen for a few more months.  Approximately 1700 New York National Guard troops are being sent through several different deployments over the next six months.  Here is a link to one of the stations with the announcement. 

His Company Commander was also interviewed shortly after the announcement in the Binghamton Press.  

The school interviewed long term substitutes earlier this month.  The sub will be there for the training in October and then for January - June 2008, and if possible September - February 2009.  His principal has been very supportive and understanding of the situation, as well as the other two kindergarten teachers.  At this time, he will most likely be teaching through the end of December, allowing us to have some time in addition to the holidays before he mobilizes in January.  

I will share information as it becomes available, hopefully providing the most acurate/concrete details.  Once Josh has deployed, I am hoping to set-up a blog where I will post pictures and share updates of Josh's tour as well.

As I mentioned, we found out about this in February, and in that time, Josh and I have had our share of good and bad days.  There is a lot to prepare for, and some things are easier to take care of than others.  As some of you know, we vacationed in the Dominican Republic in July and we had a very wonderful and relaxing stay there.  We have also been doing a lot with the house this summer to enjoy for the time that we have between now and when he leaves.  We are looking forward to the remainder of the summer and the fall, spending time with our family and each other.  We know that the next 18 months will be difficult and appreciate all of your thoughts, prayers and support.  We look forward to celebrating his homecoming with all of you.