The last wave of National Guardsmen will stop in Austin before they head for training and eventually deploy to Kuwait.

One hundred forty-five soldiers will be at the Austin Armory 10 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 18, to say good-bye before they go to Camp Shelby in Mississippi. They will deploy to Kuwait sometime in November to assist for one year with the final draw down of weapons from the war in Iraq.

Sixty of the soldiers serve the 1135th Combat Support Company out of Austin, with more than 10 Austin natives. The remainder are from Mankato.

These soldiers will join the Minnesota National Guard’s second largest deployment since World War II — 2,400 soldiers. Members of the 1135th include infantry, truck drivers and cooks.

Soldier send-off
What: 145 soldiers head for training, then Kuwait.
When: 10 a.m. Aug. 18
Where: Austin Armory