126th Regimental Association April 2024 Newsletter
Fall Meeting and Dinner
Our annual meeting and dinner will return once again to the Grand Valley Armory, 1200 44th Street SW in Wyoming, on Saturday evening, October 5, 2024. We’d love to see you attend and participate in all of the activities, so put this on your calendar: 1600 hrs – Historical archive room in the armory will be open for anyone interested in looking around and seeing what we’ve been working on 1700 hrs – Annual Business Meeting in the Red Arrow Room 1800 hrs – Social in the NCO Club 1845 hrs – Opening formalities followed by a delicious dinner in the NCO Club Freedom Room); drawings and other activities will follow
3rd Bn 126th Infantry Update Training for the Crucible After completing XCTC 23-01 (eXportable Combat Training Capability) last year at Ft. McCoy, the IRON Battalion’s training schedule has not slowed down. In anticipation of conducting Joint Readiness Training Center (JRTC) Rotation 24-08 at Fort Johnson, Louisiana, with the 32nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 3-126 Inf soldiers have spent the last nine months preparing themselves, their equipment, and their subordinates for the tough task ahead. The IRON Battalion soldiers began their train up last September and October, focusing on individual soldier tasks like land navigation and individual weapons qualification. The battalion has since focused on driver’s training and squad and the platoon situational training exercise (STX). Prior to conducting JRTC 24-08, the IRON Battalion will culminate its lead up training by conducting a force-on-force Company Field Training Exercise (FTX). This event, occurring during the April drill, gives the IRON Battalion soldiers a small taste of what force on force training will be like at JRTC. In addition to this FTX, the battalion will also conduct gunnery for the weapons company and consolidate mortar qualification during April in order to meet JRTC training prerequisites. JRTC is the premier training center focused on training brigade combat teams to conduct large scale operations on a decisive action battlefield against a near-peer threat with multi-domain capabilities. This crucible begins 29 May and ends 27 June
2024. The rotation includes rigorous deployment and redeployment operations exercising the logistical capabilities of the battalion, four days of company live fire exercises, and ten days of force-on-force training. Completing the Army’s crucible training event is a necessary step for the battalion as it begins preparation for potential mobilization in Training Year 2025. The soldiers of the IRON Battalion are eagerly anticipating this rotation as an opportunity to prove their capabilities as the best warfighters in the Michigan Army National Guard.
Home Stations A lot of changes have been made in National Guard force structure over the past 25+ years, so we thought we should bring everyone up to date on the current stationing of 3rd Battalion units: HHC 3d Bn 126th Infantry – Wyoming GVA Company A 3-126 Inf – Detroit Light Guard Armory Company B 3-126 Inf – Wyoming GVA Company C 3-126 Inf – Dowagiac Company D 3-126 Inf - Cadillac Company I 132nd BSB – Wyoming GVA
Regiment on Parade
The Grand Rapids-based regimental headquarters and several companies paraded up Monroe Avenue sometime around the Mexican Border War of 1916 (32nd Regiment) and World War I (126th Infantry Regiment) of 1917-18. The precise date is uncertain. Some of these buildings are still there including the Pantlind Hotel at the very back end of the parade which was built in 1913. The color guard is just left of center. The photo was taken by the Camera Shop which is no longer in business.