By TIFFANY MICHAELIS
STAFF WRITER
Members of the Arkansas National Guard Company C were welcomed home Monday night at the Forrest City Civic Center by family, friends, and the community.
The Guard has spent the last six months in Egypt in an effort to keep peace.
While in Egypt, their duties included observing and reporting. These duties required the Guard to make sure the only ships moving in the waterways were Egyptian vessels and to make sure there weren't a lot of excess Egyptian troops on the move.
The base that the Guard stayed at was located near the Red Sea. "It was nice to walk out first thing in the morning and see the sun rise on the Red Sea," said Staff Sergeant William Adkins. "It was the most beautiful thing you could ever see."
The base had a library with free books and videos. It also had a theater where the Guard could show movies and have stage performances. One of these performances was done by the Tampa Bay cheerleaders.
The base also offered courses by the University of Maryland, which allowed the Guard members who wanted to continue their education to do so. "They even offered us a paramedic course and a lot of men did it while we were there," Adkins commented.
The Force Exchange seemed to be very popular with the Guard. This was a place that allowed them to buy anything from soap to souvenirs.
However, the food was not so popular. "They had a seasoning that looked like parsley that they put in everything," commented Adkins. "It got old quick."
Dessert was not that bad.
"We had all the ice cream you could want," said First Lieutenant Chad Bridges.
The men were not confined to the base the entire time they were there. They had tours that went to Cairo, Mount Sinai, and Elat.
Adkins was able to take a trip to Elat. "We could travel if we wanted to, but we weren't allowed to leave the base without a battle buddy," said Adkins.
The heat did not stop Specialists Ronnie McShan from visiting Cairo. "The Pyramids were amazing," he said.
According to McShan, the hottest day was around 140. But the hot temperatures did not have the water warmed up in February.
"The worst part for me was water survival training in February," said Sergeant First Class Richard McNeary. "The water was very cold."
McNeary supplied troops at the remote sites with food, mail, laundry services, and moral support.
Bridges enjoyed getting to experience another part of the world. "I loved the fact that I was representing my nation," he said.
Some Guard members returned home to a newborn child or to find that a loved one had past away.
"We take for granted the little things you can do," said Bridges. "It was hard for some to be away from their family and know that they are having to take care of the things we normally do."
The Guard members were glad to be back in the United States and glad to be back home with family and friends.
"Coming back into the States was a little weird at first, but it was nice to see grass, people driving normal, and to know that I could walk up to anyone and they would speak the same language," said Bridges.
St. Francis County had a June unemployment rate of 9 percent, up from 7.8 percent in May, but lower than the 9.7 percent recorded in June of 2001.
According to the figures from the state Employment Security Department, during June St. Francis County had a civilian labor force of 12,225, with 11,125 working and 1,100 not working.
The 9 percent figure put St. Francis County into a tie with Bradley County for the 10th highest unemployment out of Arkansas' 75 counties.
The highest unemployment was in Mississippi County, which had a 15.3 percent rate. Four other counties had unemployment over 10 percent in June (Chicot, 11.4; Desha, 11.1; Phillips and Dallas, 10.8).
The lowest unemployment was in Benton County, with 2.2 percent. In all, 21 counties had unemployment of 5 percent or less.
Unemployment rates in surrounding counties were as follows: Cross, 7.4 percent; Crittenden, 6.5 percent; Lee, 7.8 percent; Phillips, 10.8 percent; Monroe, 8.4 percent; and Woodruff, 8.7 percent.
Statewide, the jobless rate was 5.2 percent, a decrease of one-tenth of a percentage point from May.