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LINCOLN — Duana Landreth put her left hand on a grandson's shoulder and her right hand over her heart during the national anthem here Saturday, and then she prepared to send three sons to war.
The sons — Steven, Tim and Robert Brewer — have deployed before, but never as a threesome in the same unit.
This time, they will go to Afghanistan with about 300 other members of the Nebraska National Guard. They participated in a send-off here at Hawks Field on a humid, sunny day before more than 3,000 family members and friends.
People hugged and shook the hands of the guardsmen in camouflage fatigues. Some shed tears, and others just looked grimly serious.
The Brewer boys have served in Iraq, and it showed. If they shed tears, they did it in private. They held their kids and hugged their wives and mom, but they had clearly endured such moments before.
Staff Sgt. Steven Brewer, 28, described his thoughts on the goodbyes this way: “Get 'em out of the way and get on the bus and get your head in the mission. And the mission starts now.”
Their mother dabbed at her forehead and eyes with a tissue. The humidity made everyone sweat during the hourlong program on the lush minor-league baseball field, but her eyes were red from shedding tears.
“I'm OK. I'm a little sad, but I'm OK,” she said after the ceremony. “The welcome-home ceremony a year from today will be far better.”
She described herself as the “proudest mom in America.” Her daughter Jackie served in Kuwait as a Marine seven years ago.
The Nebraska Army National Guard cavalry squadron will support the Iowa Army National Guard's 2nd Brigade Combat Team. Send-offs for about 2,800 Iowa Guardsmen will take place over the next nine days. The Iowans and Nebraskans will train Afghan soldiers and fight insurgents.
The speakers at the ceremony included Gov. Dave Heineman, U.S. Sens. Ben Nelson and Mike Johanns and U.S. Reps. Jeff Fortenberry and Adrian Smith, all of Nebraska.
In the audience, people wore T-shirts with images of flags, eagles and the message “Support Our Troops” on them.
Some wore shirts that said, “Team Schultz” in honor of 1st Sgt. Doug Schultz of Kearney. One woman wore the shirt “National Guard Girlfriend,” for Spc. Sean Roth, and another wore a T-shirt that read, “National Guard Mom,” also for Roth, of Crete.
The three Brewer brothers, two of whom grew up in Elwood and the third in Gordon, are married and have four kids among them. Steven Brewer and his wife, Nancy, have a second child on the way.
“I feel pretty good, other than leaving my whole family,” said Staff Sgt. Tim Brewer, the father of 2- and 6-year-old sons. “It sucks, but I guess it's got to be done. I think we'll do good.”
Sgt. Robert Brewer, 25, said of his 18-month-old boy Maxx: “At least I got to see his first birthday. That was a big deal for me.”
The three brothers made their way to one of the chartered buses. From Lincoln, they would fly to Mississippi for training, then to California for more training, and eventually to Afghanistan. They will return to Nebraska next summer.
Duana Landreth of Elwood and her husband, David, walked over to hug her three sons one more time. Then the Brewer boys boarded the bus, and Duana and David were left to hug one another.
Contact the writer:
444-1123, rick.ruggles@owh.com
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