BLUFFDALE, Utah -- Forty Utah soldiers deployed Thursday morning from the National Guard Readiness Center in Bluffdale.
The soldiers are special forces and are part of the Bravo Company 1st Battalion, 19th Special Forces Group.
They will be helping train the local forces in the USCENTCOM region, which is in the Middle East.
While most of them have deployed overseas before, for Staff Sgt. Guy Mellor, this was his first time—even though he has been with the Army for 10 years. Mellor even won "best solider" in the entire United States Army back in 2011, which was determined after his performance in the "Best Warrior" competition.
Mellor and his wife have been preparing for this moment.
"I'm very excited on the one hand because I've trained for it for 10 years now, and the Army spent a lot of money on me to train," said Staff Sgt. Mellor. "I'm definitely excited, then, on the other hand, it's tough to say goodbye to loved ones."
He referred to his wife Tara of almost three years. Their three-year wedding anniversary is on December 1.
"I'm proud of him," said Tara, her eyes filled with tears. "I'm proud of all of them, and I know they will take good care of each other, and they will all come home safe, and we will get to be with them again."
This group will return in about seven months.
