Wednesday, August 20, 2008 - Page updated at 09:36 AM

Washington National Guard's 81st Brigade moving out

Soldiers in the Washington National Guard's 81st Brigade have said their goodbyes. They'll be in Iraq this fall.

AUBURN, Wash. —

Soldiers in the Washington National Guard's 81st Brigade have said their goodbyes. They'll be in Iraq this fall.

A dozen farewell ceremonies were held around the state Tuesday, including one at Game Farm Park in Auburn for guardsmen from the Kent Armory.

A guard spokesman, Lt. Keith Kosik, says the brigade will be in Fort McCoy, Wis., by this weekend for final training.

The soldiers will be sent to Iraq in October for a year-long deployment protecting convoys and providing other security. The 81st also served in Iraq in 2004.

The brigade is based in Seattle and has units stationed in 10 armories across the state. It has about 2,500 members from Washington and 1,000 from California.

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