FORT HOOD, TX-Praevius Group’s Chris Miller and Nate Self were among the many friends and family welcoming home the 20th Engineer Battalion, 36th Engineer Brigade back from a 12-month deployment in Afghanistan.

As former soldiers, Miller and Self believe it is important to support returning servicemen.

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After 12 months, thousands of missions and 250 roadside bombs cleared, the 20th Engineer Battalion, 36th Engineer Brigade closed the final chapter on its deployment to Afghanistan during a colors-uncasing ceremony Friday at Cameron Field.

The Lumberjack unit, whose lineage dates back to World War I, returned to Fort Hood in mid-January. The unfurling was originally planned for Feb. 3, but it was postponed due to weather.

About 450 soldiers from the battalion’s Headquarters and Headquarters Company, Forward Support Company, 510th Clearance Company and 584th Mobility Augmentation Company stood in formation to hear their last official “welcome homes” from Col. Kent Savre, brigade commander, and Canadian Brig. Gen. Peter Atkinson, deputy commanding general, III Corps and Fort Hood.

The battalion has deployed twice to Iraq. This was its first deployment to Afghanistan.

Savre, recently redeployed from the brigade’s mission in Iraq, told 20th soldiers that their efforts in Kandahar province, in oppressive heat and against a lethal enemy, “made a huge difference for the people of Afghanistan and their democracy, and our nation’s strength and democracy.”

It wouldn’t have been possible without support from the home front, he said, and it wasn’t without a price. He asked those present to observe a moment of silence for the 13 battalion soldiers who were killed in action.

“We will never forget them,” Atkinson said.

In addition to those lost in combat, four battalion soldiers preparing to deploy died during the Nov. 5, 2009, shooting at Fort Hood’s Soldier Readiness Processing Center. Eleven more were wounded.

About 30 soldiers, including battalion commander Lt. Col. Peter Andrysiak, received Bronze Star Medals during an awards ceremony following the uncasing.

Andrysiak commanded a task force that grew to 1,100 soldiers, including hundreds of soldiers from non-Fort Hood units, during the deployment.

Although the Afghanistan mission is over, he said, a new one began as soon as the Lumberjacks touched ground: keeping soldiers safe at home.

Latent issues can surface after a deployment, he said, and leaders are making soldiers and families aware of the resources available to them at Fort Hood.

“The job for leaders doesn’t change,” Andrysiak said.

Contact Colleen Flaherty at colleenf@kdhnews.com or (254) 501-7559.