Lake Charles Welcomes Home Fort Polk Soldiers

By Tore Carlberg




Members of the W.B. Williamson, American Legion, Post Number One and Mayfield, Taylor, McClain Post Number 551, met the 500 members of the 46th Engineering Battalion based at Fort Polk, Louisiana as they returned from their duty in Afghanistan. The Battalion landed in Lake Charles at Millionaire Air Park on the Chennault Air Strip.

Units returning to Fort Polk from abroad would normally land at England Air Force Base near Alexandria, Louisiana. However, as the runway at England is under construction, the arrivals were switched to Lake Charles.


These Lake Charles landings should continue until the construction at England Air Force Base is completed. The Battalion arrived on August 29th, September 2nd and September 5th, 2009 during the early morning hours.

There was off and on rain for the early morning of the first land. Although suffering from a head cold, Lake Charles Mayor Randy Roach personally met that plane and said of the experience, “There is no greater honor for an elected official than to welcome the troops home from overseas.”

The soldiers, young men and women, were wearing their fatigue uniforms and carrying knapsacks and weapons on their arrival. They were tired after their fifty-five hour flight, but glad to be home. After processing and turning in their weapons, they boarded buses for the hour long trip back to Fort Polk, where their family and friends were awaiting their arrival. The Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association, as they do for every military arrival in this area, escorted the buses to Fort Polk.

The local American Legion Units had been alerted of the arrivals by Ms. Theresa Lawson with the Public Relation’s Department at Fort Polk. Although it was at the last minute the two Posts immediately put together the welcoming. One of those instrumental in organizing the three events was Jim Jackson, the First Vice Commander of Post One.

Wearing a standard American Legion hat and red Legion shirt, he was heard saying, “It sure wasn’t like this when I returned from Vietnam. There was no one to meet our plane and in fact, we were not allowed to travel in our military uniform. We were required to purchase civilian clothes for the trip.”

Another American Legion greeter, Stephen Rothermel, recounted, “Each and every one of those soldiers, grabbed my hand and looked me in the eye. They told me how grateful they were for us to be there for them and I left that morning with a proud feeling in my heart.”