The 1/30 Infantry Battalion had its Family Organizational Day at the Liberty County/Armed Services Family YMCA in Hinesville Friday. The fun-filled day began at 9 a.m. and lasted until 3 p.m. Despite the hazy, overcast weather, more than 2,000 soldiers and family members had a good time.
Battalion commander Lt. Col. Ken Adgie said the battalion would head to Iraq later this month, so the event was a nice way to relax.
“The focus this week was doing our soldier readiness checks and getting those last details completed,” he said. “Yesterday (Thursday) we did a battalion run and a prayer breakfast and today (Friday) we’re having a nice organizational day to bring out the families and give the soldiers a chance to relax. They know they’re ready. We want to make sure that their families know they’re ready.”
There were plenty of activities for all who attended. From a talent show to football to basketball to a play area for the children, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.
“We got a couple hundred guys here playing sports. We got the children here playing with the moms. I think they’re enjoying it,” Adgie said. “Companies are having a good time playing against each other in soccer and ultimate Frisbee. We got water volleyball, basketball and volleyball. We got eight different sports going on today. We’re just trying to do some fun things for everybody so they enjoy it.”
YMCA Family Programs Director Christina Anthony said preparation for the event was strenuous, but the hard work was worth it.
“The event was very successful and to have families and soldiers come off Fort Stewart and have the community support them is great,” she said. “Many of these soldiers immediately leave for Iraq next week so this is pretty much the last memory they have with their families in the community. This event is about putting the YMCA’s Christian principles and our motto, ‘build strong kids, strong families and strong communities,’ into action.”
Adgie had kind words about the YMCA, saying, “it's just a great place that does great work, not just for the Army, but the community itself. Christina Anthony and her staff really work closely with us.”
Adgie also appreciated the Veterans Association of Hinesville donating their time to the day and grilling.
“We asked them to come out today and have the old soldiers spend some time with the young soldiers,” Adgie said.
The students from Youth Challenge on Fort Stewart also participated, refereeing some of the sports.
“It’s the younger kids interacting with some of the soldiers and kind of helping them out a little bit,” Adgie said. “It's a positive experience for them and we're happy we were able to coordinate and have them come out.”
For being ready to go to war, Adgie says there’s no doubt about it.
“We're absolutely ready to go,” he said. “We've been training on the best equipment. We know our family readiness groups are ready. We've been training them real hard for about 12 months to make sure they're ready to go also. And, that's a real important piece. We've got 435 married soldiers in our battalion. You add up all the children, that's almost 1,500 people with the spouses and the children. So we know it's real important to make sure that they're well taken care of when we're gone.”
— Staff writer Andrea Washington contributed to this article.
Battalion commander Lt. Col. Ken Adgie said the battalion would head to Iraq later this month, so the event was a nice way to relax.
“The focus this week was doing our soldier readiness checks and getting those last details completed,” he said. “Yesterday (Thursday) we did a battalion run and a prayer breakfast and today (Friday) we’re having a nice organizational day to bring out the families and give the soldiers a chance to relax. They know they’re ready. We want to make sure that their families know they’re ready.”
There were plenty of activities for all who attended. From a talent show to football to basketball to a play area for the children, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.
“We got a couple hundred guys here playing sports. We got the children here playing with the moms. I think they’re enjoying it,” Adgie said. “Companies are having a good time playing against each other in soccer and ultimate Frisbee. We got water volleyball, basketball and volleyball. We got eight different sports going on today. We’re just trying to do some fun things for everybody so they enjoy it.”
YMCA Family Programs Director Christina Anthony said preparation for the event was strenuous, but the hard work was worth it.
“The event was very successful and to have families and soldiers come off Fort Stewart and have the community support them is great,” she said. “Many of these soldiers immediately leave for Iraq next week so this is pretty much the last memory they have with their families in the community. This event is about putting the YMCA’s Christian principles and our motto, ‘build strong kids, strong families and strong communities,’ into action.”
Adgie had kind words about the YMCA, saying, “it's just a great place that does great work, not just for the Army, but the community itself. Christina Anthony and her staff really work closely with us.”
Adgie also appreciated the Veterans Association of Hinesville donating their time to the day and grilling.
“We asked them to come out today and have the old soldiers spend some time with the young soldiers,” Adgie said.
The students from Youth Challenge on Fort Stewart also participated, refereeing some of the sports.
“It’s the younger kids interacting with some of the soldiers and kind of helping them out a little bit,” Adgie said. “It's a positive experience for them and we're happy we were able to coordinate and have them come out.”
For being ready to go to war, Adgie says there’s no doubt about it.
“We're absolutely ready to go,” he said. “We've been training on the best equipment. We know our family readiness groups are ready. We've been training them real hard for about 12 months to make sure they're ready to go also. And, that's a real important piece. We've got 435 married soldiers in our battalion. You add up all the children, that's almost 1,500 people with the spouses and the children. So we know it's real important to make sure that they're well taken care of when we're gone.”
— Staff writer Andrea Washington contributed to this article.