Email   Print   Share By Erin Rogers, Sentinel Staff

Facebook Digg Delicious September 6, 2012 | Living

The Back Creek Band performs at the 20th Eng. Bn. predeployment party Friday. The band’s lead singer is the 20th Eng. Bn.’s own Staff Sgt. Greg Showman, HHC. Erin Rogers, Sentinel Staff

Kandalyn Owens, 7; TJ Martin, 6; Keyauree Beaubrun, 4; and Madison Adams, 7, participate in a water relay race at the 20th Eng. Bn. predeployment party for the Soldiers and their Families Friday. Erin Rogers, Sentinel Staff

The Family Readiness Group of the 20th Engineer Battalion threw a predeployment party for the Soldiers and Families of the unit Friday in the courtyard of the battalion headquarters to kick off the four-day weekend.

Complete with a live band, a barbecue, water games and various contests, the celebration turned out to be a success with a turnout of Soldiers and their Families.

“We’re having this festival for a number of reasons,” Lt. Col. Jason Kelly, 20th Eng. Bn. commander, said. “In addition to it being a last hoorah before out deployment, it’s a back-to-school celebration, an end-of-summer celebration and a welcome back from our block leave. Our only agenda is to have a good time.”

The battalion FRG makes it a priority to have a Family event every quarter, to include single Soldiers in the unit. Kelly said having these events boosts morale within the unit, and builds not only the Soldier-to-Soldier relationship, but the Soldier-to-Family relationship, as well.

The unit’s two larger companies are already in Afghanistan and waiting to welcome the rest of the battalion down range in little more than 40 days, and many of the already-deployed Soldiers’ spouses came out to the event to be a part of the celebration, too.

“This is an opportunity for the Families to get to know each other and build a support group before the entire unit leaves in a few weeks,” said Jamie Kellogg, the unit’s FRG leader and wife of Sgt. Ray Kellogg of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 20th Eng, Bn., who will be leaving before the year is over.

Jamie added that she and the rest of the FRG members have been planning the event for almost six months, and they are all so pleased with how many people showed up.

The unit also planned activities for the children to enjoy at the celebration, such as water-relay races, a jump house and a dunk tank, where the 20th Eng. Soldiers were the most popular dunk tank victims among the children.

Throughout the event, the Back Creek Band, who play everything from southern and classic rock to country music, provided live music for the party guests. The unit’s own Staff Sgt. Greg Showman, HHC, is the band’s lead singer.

“We love having the Back Creek Band play at our events,” Kelly said. “It’s almost like our unit has its own personal band.”

HHC’s first sergeant, Sgt. Ruben Gonzalez, said having events like the predeployment party is important for their unit because it makes them stronger – and strong Soldiers begin with strong Families.

“We want the Families to realize that we put an emphasis on building the battalion-Family relationship,” he added.

2nd Lt. Mark Anderson, the HHC S-3 training officer-in-charge, echoed Gonzalez’s comments by saying he knows this event was important for both the Soldiers and the Families because it is one of the last things they get to do together, as a group.

“This is the perfect opportunity for everyone to have some fun before they have to leave,” Kellogg said. “And the support relationships formed tonight will get us all through the year until our Soldiers come home.”