WILKES-BARRE, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — There was a bittersweet event in Wilkes-Barre. After more than a century of service, the 109th has been absorbed by the 28th Division Artillery.
Leaders say it is not the end of a legacy, but the beginning of a new chapter.
Inside the Kingston Armory on Sunday was pride, honor, and history.
The 109th Field Artillery formally cased its colors, and the 28th Division Artillery rolled out its own.
"The retirement of the 109th is not the end of a book. It's a transition. It's the next chapter," Pennsylvania National Guard Major General John Pippy said.
More than 200 soldiers from the 109th will continue serving under the 28th Division Artillery at the Kingston Armory.
While around 100 others are being reassigned across the state, keeping their skills in the fight.
Dancing down streets in Wilkes-Barre Annual Multi-Cultural Parade
"The 109th's record of service will forever remain woven into the fabric of the keystone division. And its soldiers, past and present, stand as proof that the strength of our artillery is not the guns, but in the people who serve behind them," Brigadier General Jeffery Heasley explained.
For some, the change means leaving this armory, but not the bonds of service.
"This has been my family in the 109th. So it is bittersweet. Although as the army is changing and modernization is coming, it's for future good," 109th Field Artillery Lieutenant Colonel Scott Brunnenneyer stated.
The new division brings a different structure, new equipment, and a mission leaders say will carry Pennsylvania's National Guard into an ever-changing world.
"And let's move forward with a purpose, with unity, and with full knowledge that you are going to write the next chapter of the storied history of our Wyoming Valley soldiers," Major General Pippy added.
A farewell to the 109th, and a fresh beginning for the 28th.
The 109th traces its roots to 1775 and was officially designated a field artillery regiment in 1917.
While that lineage remains part of the guard's legacy, Sunday marks a new mission under the 28th Infantry Division, the oldest continuously serving division in the US Army.
