Fort Bliss has own ‘Band of Brothers’

Staff Sgt. Mike Miles
5A TAC Public Affairs

'You may take our patch, but you will never take our pride.'
From left, Sgt. Benjamin Waugaman, Staff Sgt. Frank Ceriani, Sgt. Jayson Waugaman, Spc. Stephen Ceriani, Pfc. Matthew Huber and Spc. Timothy Huber.

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For the soldiers of A Company, 1st Battalion, 112th Infantry (M), Pennsylvania National Guard, the unit is truly a “Band of Brothers.”

There are three sets of brothers in the company. A-1-112th is attached to the 116th Brigade Combat Team training here at Fort Bliss for a mission in Iraq. The unit’s headquarters is in a rural area north of Pittsburg.
One pair of brthers include Staff Sgt. Frank Ceriani, 33 and his younger brother, Spc. Stephen Ceriani, 29. Staff Sgt. Ceriani served with the 2nd Ranger Battalion at Fort Lewis as a medic before joining the National Guard. Spc. Ceriani said he was a “9/11 enlistee.”

A pair of sergeants makes up the second set of brothers. 28-year-old Benjamin Waugaman served with the 4th Infantry Division before joining the National Guard. Younger brother Jayson, 25 has served in Bosnia with the 1st Cavalry.

The Huber brothers are the youngest pair of brothers in the company. Spc. Timothy Huber is 22 years old, while Pfc. Matthew Huber is 19. During the interview, Spc. Huber revealed that his wife of 18 months had told him the night before that she would be having a baby around the end of March.

1-112th can trace its heritage back to the Union regiments that formed in Pennsylvania to fight the Civil War. The men are proud of the unit’s long history that includes combat in World War I and World War I. and they are miffed about having to take off their “Keystone” patch of the 28th Infantry Division and put on the “Snake” patch of the 116th Brigade.

Posted on the door of their modular tent at Forward Operating Base McGregor is a large representation of the Keystone patch. Written on the sign is, You may take our patch, but you will never take our pride. The men say they may not be able to wear their patch, but they will take their unit guidon and battle flag to Iraq.

The reasons these Soldiers joined the National Guard are varied. Staff Sgt. Ceriani said he liked the military and missed it after leaving active duty. He changed from a medic to an infantryman because, “I wanted to try something different.” Brother Stephen signed up after 9/11, proving that this fight is personal for a lot of Soldiers.

Sgt. Ben Waugaman said he joined for the educational benefits, and now works as a flood plain scientist for a civil engineering company in Baltimore, Maryland. He commutes four-and-a-half hours to drill with the unit. He could have joined a unit closer to his new home, but feels a loyalty to the hometown unit that helped with his education. Brother Jayson also likes the education benefit and was one semester away from a degree in elementary education. “This is going to put that on hold for a while. I’ll graduate in seven years instead of five,” he said.

Pfc. Huber was also a student, studying technology education. Spc. Huber said he always wanted to be in the military. “I joined the Guard because I didn’t want to be away from my girlfriend or my family, but I could serve in the military.”

All the Soldiers said their parents were supportive of their impending deployment to Iraq, but they added that they were obviously concerned having two sons in theater at the same time. Staff Sgt. Ceriani said his father and uncle served in Korea shortly after the armistice, “They are very supportive ... all of the family is.”