NationalguardBISMARCK, N.D. – A small group of North Dakota Army National Guard Soldiers assigned to the Valley City, N.D.-based 231st Brigade Support Battalion (231st BSB) have received an alert notification for possible mobilization. The Soldiers are organized into a specialized Logistical Support Element (LSE) designated as the 231st BSB LSE.

If mobilized, approximately 15 Soldiers assigned to the 231st BSB LSE are expected to serve in support of Operation Enduring Freedom Afghanistan late in 2014. This would be the first overseas deployment for Soldiers of the 231st BSB since the North Dakota Army National Guard’s peace-keeping mission in Kosovo in 2009-2010.

“These expert Army logisticians will provide specialized supply operations support to U.S. and Coalition forces still serving in Afghanistan,” said Maj. Gen. David Sprynczynatyk, North Dakota adjutant general. “If these Soldiers are mobilized, it’s a comfort to know that they can rely on the continued support of their families and employers allowing them to concentrate on their overseas mission.”

North Dakota Army National Guard units that are currently mobilized overseas include the Bismarck-based 814th Medical Company (Area Support) in Afghanistan and Company C, 2nd Battalion, 285th Aviation Regiment in Kosovo. Another 200 Soldiers with the Grand Forks-based 1st Battalion, 188th Air Defense Artillery Regiment are serving on a yearlong deployment to Washington, D.C., three are serving for a year in Texas as part of the Southwest Border Mission, and two North Dakota Soldiers are serving in Kuwait.

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Since the 2001 terrorist attacks on America, the North Dakota National Guard has mobilized more than 4,000 Soldiers and more than 2,400 Airmen in support of the Global War on Terrorism. About 70 percent of all members serving today have joined since that time. Currently, more than 80 North Dakota Guardsmen are mobilized for overseas service and more than 200 are on duty in Washington, D.C., and in Texas. With a total force of about 4,400 Guardsmen, the North Dakota National Guard remains ready for stateside response and national defense. For every 10,000 citizens in North Dakota, 65 serve in the North Dakota National Guard, a rate that’s more than four times the national average.