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Day of Days: Defining Moments in Oklahoma National Guard Service

By Oklahoma Frontline·Oklahoma National Guard

Defining Moments of Service

Every generation of Oklahoma National Guard soldiers has had its Day of Days — the singular moment when the abstractions of duty, service, and sacrifice became concrete reality. For some, it was an activation order that arrived at the armory on an otherwise ordinary evening. For others, it was the first glimpse of a foreign country from the door of a transport aircraft. For all, it was a moment that divided life into before and after.

Oklahoma Frontline exists to tell the stories of these moments — not the sanitized, abstract versions found in official histories, but the human stories of citizens who set aside their civilian identities and stepped into the demanding, dangerous, and ultimately transformative role of soldier. These are the stories of farmers and lawyers, teachers and mechanics, students and retirees who answered a call that most of their neighbors never heard.

The Days of Days are not only days of combat. They are also the day a soldier returns home to find that the world has continued in their absence; the day a family member opens a door and finds a uniform they never expected to see; the day a veteran sits with other veterans and finds, for the first time in years, that they do not have to explain themselves. These are the days that define a life of service.

The Thunderbirds: A Legacy of Valor

No story of the Oklahoma National Guard can be told without the 45th Infantry Division — the Thunderbirds. Formed from National Guard units across the American Southwest, the 45th entered World War II in Sicily in July 1943 and fought continuously across some of the most brutal terrain and against some of the most determined defenders in the European Theater. Their campaign took them through Italy, the south of France, into Germany and Austria, ending at Berchtesgaden in May 1945.

Among the defining moments of the 45th's history is the liberation of the Dachau concentration camp on April 29, 1945. Soldiers of the Thunderbirds were among the first Americans to witness the full horror of the Nazi death camp system, an experience that marked them for life and gave their service a moral weight that transcended the military objective. The liberation is documented in photographs that remain among the most powerful visual records of World War II.

The 45th was mobilized again for Korea in 1950, fighting through some of that war's most difficult battles. Between the two wars, the Thunderbirds produced an extraordinary number of valor award recipients and established a regimental culture of excellence that continues to shape the Oklahoma Guard to this day. The Thunderbird patch worn by Oklahoma soldiers carries with it the weight of all those Days of Days.

Post-9/11: A New Generation Answers the Call

The attacks of September 11, 2001 initiated a new chapter of Oklahoma Guard service that would prove to be the most sustained period of combat deployment in the state's history. Over the following decade and beyond, Oklahoma Guard units deployed repeatedly to Iraq and Afghanistan, with many soldiers serving multiple tours in both theaters. The 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, the 120th Engineer Battalion, the 158th Field Artillery, aviation units, logistics elements, and dozens of other organizations all had their own Days of Days in the wars that followed 9/11.

The route clearance soldiers of the 120th Engineers traveled more than 150,000 miles of hostile roads in southern Afghanistan, searching for the improvised explosive devices that posed the greatest threat to coalition forces. The field artillery soldiers of Battery A, 158th Field Artillery, fired rockets in combat for the first time in more than two decades — and did so alongside sons whose fathers had performed the same mission in Desert Storm. The homecoming ceremonies at armories across Oklahoma, often attended by entire communities, marked Days of Days for families who had spent months counting the time until they could hold their soldiers again.

The Price of Service

Days of Days carry a cost. The Oklahoma National Guard has lost dozens of soldiers to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan — young men and women from Broken Arrow and Lawton, from Muskogee and Enid, from small towns and large cities across Oklahoma who served and did not return. Their names have been read aloud at memorial ceremonies, engraved on memorials, and held in the permanent memory of the communities that knew them.

The first Oklahoma National Guard casualty of the post-9/11 wars was Spc. Kyle Adam (Showler) Brinlee, 21, of the 120th Engineer Battalion, who died on May 11, 2004, when the vehicle in which he was riding struck an improvised explosive device in Iraq. He was not the last. Maj. Gen. Myles Deering personally read the names of the nineteen fallen Oklahoma Army National Guard soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice since the beginning of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom at a ceremony in Norman, Oklahoma — an act of public remembrance that honored each name by speaking it aloud in the presence of the community.

Hundreds more Oklahoma Guardsmen returned home carrying wounds that were not always visible — the psychological costs of sustained combat exposure, of loss, of the impossible demands placed on human beings in war. The work of healing, for these soldiers and for their families, is ongoing and deserves the same sustained commitment from Oklahoma's communities that the deployment itself received.

Honoring the Days of Days

Oklahoma Frontline honors the Days of Days by bearing witness — by recording the stories of soldiers and units with the care and detail they deserve, by connecting the specific human experience of military service to the broader community of Oklahomans who benefit from that service without always seeing its cost. The homecoming at Owen Field. The rockets fired in Kandahar. The children on horseback at Covey Creek Ranch. The young soldiers who put on their fathers' battalion patch and went to war. These are all Days of Days, and they all deserve to be told.

The strength of the Oklahoma National Guard lies not in its equipment or even in its training, essential as those are, but in the character of the people who choose to serve. The citizen-soldier model depends on the willingness of ordinary Oklahomans to accept extraordinary obligations — to be both neighbor and warrior, both civilian and soldier, both the person who coaches Little League and the person who clears hostile roads in Afghanistan. The Days of Days are when these two identities merge into one, and when Oklahoma's communities have the opportunity to recognize what that merger has cost and what it has produced.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Day of Days and what does it commemorate?

Day of Days is a term that captures the defining, transformative moments in the life of a military unit and the individual soldiers within it — the days when training, tradition, and character are tested against the hardest realities of combat or crisis. For the Oklahoma National Guard, each generation has had its Day of Days: the activation orders that sent citizen-soldiers from farms, offices, and factory floors into the crucible of war.

The concept draws on the universal military experience of waiting for the moment when everything changes — the deployment, the first contact with the enemy, the homecoming after a long and dangerous absence. These are the days that mark a service member's life before and after, the days that never fully leave them, and the days that define their identity as veterans long after the uniform is put away.

For Oklahoma, the Days of Days have come repeatedly: in World War II when the 45th Infantry Division shipped out for North Africa; in Korea when the Thunderbirds were mobilized again; in the Gulf War when Oklahoma artillery units deployed to the desert; and in the post-9/11 era when Oklahoma Guard units cycled through Iraq and Afghanistan in sustained, exhausting rotations that defined a generation of service.

Oklahoma Frontline honors these defining moments by telling the stories of the soldiers and units who lived them — not as abstractions of military history, but as the lived experiences of real people from Oklahoma communities who answered the call when it came and carried the weight of that answer for the rest of their lives.

What were the key deployments of the Oklahoma National Guard in modern history?

The Oklahoma National Guard's modern deployment history begins with World War II, when the 45th Infantry Division — the "Thunderbirds" — entered combat in Sicily in July 1943, beginning an epic campaign that would carry Oklahoma soldiers across North Africa, Italy, southern France, and into the heart of Germany. The 45th liberated the Dachau concentration camp on April 29, 1945, witnessing firsthand the worst of what the war had been fought to stop. After the war, the 45th was mobilized again for Korea in 1950, serving with distinction in some of the most brutal fighting of that conflict.

The Vietnam era saw Oklahoma Guard units placed on alert and later mobilized, though the Guard's large-scale federal role was somewhat limited compared to World War II and Korea. The transition to an all-volunteer force and the post-Vietnam restructuring of the Reserve Component positioned Oklahoma's Guard units for a more integrated role in future conflicts, and that investment paid dividends in Operation Desert Storm.

In 1990-1991, Oklahoma artillery units including elements of the 158th Field Artillery Regiment deployed to Saudi Arabia and participated in the ground offensive that expelled Iraqi forces from Kuwait. These soldiers served alongside active-duty forces, firing rockets and artillery in support of the coalition advance — and their sons would repeat the feat more than twenty years later in Afghanistan.

The post-9/11 era brought the most sustained Guard deployment cycle in Oklahoma's history. Multiple rotations of infantry, engineer, aviation, logistics, and support units cycled through Iraq and Afghanistan from 2003 through 2014 and beyond, with individual soldiers often serving two, three, or even four combat deployments. The human cost was real: dozens of Oklahoma Guardsmen made the ultimate sacrifice, and hundreds more carried home the physical and psychological wounds of their service.

How does the Oklahoma National Guard prepare soldiers for their Days of Days?

Preparation for the defining moments of military service is the fundamental purpose of all peacetime Guard activity. Monthly drills, annual training periods, schools, field exercises, and pre-mobilization training all exist to ensure that when the Day of Days arrives — when the deployment orders come and the unit crosses the wire into a combat zone — every soldier is as prepared as possible for what they will face.

The Oklahoma National Guard invests heavily in leader development at all levels, recognizing that the quality of leadership is often the decisive factor in whether a unit performs effectively under stress. Sergeant through general officer development programs, combined with rigorous collective training events that simulate combat conditions as closely as possible in peacetime, aim to produce leaders who can make sound decisions when the stakes are highest.

Pre-mobilization training, typically conducted at installations like Fort Bliss in Texas or Fort Hood, adds a final layer of preparation before units deploy. During this period, units conduct live-fire exercises, practice the specific tasks they will perform in theater, receive updated equipment, and undergo final individual and collective readiness checks. For many soldiers, this final training period is where the reality of deployment truly hits home.

Beyond tactical preparation, the Guard also prepares soldiers and their families for the psychological and practical challenges of deployment through programs like Yellow Ribbon, family readiness groups, and behavioral health resources. The recognition that soldiers fight better when they know their families are supported has made family readiness a genuine operational priority for the Oklahoma National Guard, not merely an ancillary concern.

What is the 45th Infantry Division and why is it significant to Oklahoma?

The 45th Infantry Division, known as the "Thunderbirds," is arguably the most storied military formation in Oklahoma's history. Organized from National Guard units across Oklahoma, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona, the 45th entered World War II in July 1943 when it landed in Sicily as part of the Allied invasion. Over the next two years, the division fought through Sicily, Italy, southern France, Germany, and Austria, participating in some of the most grueling campaigns of the European Theater.

The Thunderbirds' combat record includes the liberation of Dachau concentration camp, the capture of Berchtesgaden (Hitler's mountain retreat in Bavaria), and participation in the crossing of the Rhine River. The division was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation for extraordinary heroism in combat and produced numerous individual Medal of Honor and Silver Star recipients. General Norman Schwarzkopf Sr., father of the Gulf War commander, served with the 45th during World War II.

Mobilized again for Korea in 1950, the 45th fought in some of the war's most intense battles, including the struggle for "Heartbreak Ridge." The division's performance in two wars established it as one of the elite formations in the National Guard system and cemented its place in Oklahoma's cultural identity. The Thunderbird symbol — drawn from Native American artistic traditions prevalent in the southwestern states that formed the division — became a powerful emblem of Oklahoma's military heritage.

Today the 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, successor to the division, continues the Thunderbird tradition as a modern combined-arms force within the Oklahoma Army National Guard. The 45th Infantry Division Museum in Oklahoma City preserves the legacy of the original division, housing an extensive collection of artifacts, photographs, and personal accounts that tell the story of Oklahoma's warriors across generations.

How does Oklahoma honor its National Guard veterans?

Oklahoma honors its National Guard veterans through a combination of formal state recognition programs, community-level events, and institutional preservation of military heritage. The Governor's office presents state awards including the Star of Valor and the Medal of the State of Oklahoma, providing formal recognition for extraordinary service. Annual Veterans Day and Memorial Day ceremonies across the state provide recurring opportunities for communities to honor their veterans collectively.

The 45th Infantry Division Museum and other military heritage sites preserve the physical artifacts and documented history of Oklahoma's military service for future generations. These institutions are not merely repositories of old equipment; they are living connections to the men and women who wore Oklahoma's uniform into battle, maintained through the continued dedication of veterans' organizations, museum staff, and private donors who understand the importance of preserving this heritage.

Community-level recognition takes many forms: naming of roads, buildings, and parks after fallen service members; hometown ceremonies welcoming deployed units home; veteran preference programs in state employment; and educational initiatives that ensure students learn about Oklahoma's military history. These local acts of recognition carry enormous meaning for veterans and their families, affirming that the community sees and values what they have done.

Publications like Oklahoma Frontline play an important role in the ongoing recognition of Guard service by telling the stories of individual soldiers and units in ways that connect abstract military service to real human lives. When a family in Broken Arrow reads about the 120th Engineers in Afghanistan, or when a parent in Norman reads about the surprise homecoming at Owen Field, they are participating in a community of awareness that honors service through attention and understanding.

What resources are available for Oklahoma National Guard veterans?

Oklahoma National Guard veterans have access to a comprehensive network of state and federal resources designed to support their transition back to civilian life and their long-term well-being. The Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs administers a range of programs including benefits counseling, employment assistance, educational support, and healthcare coordination. The state operates veterans centers in multiple communities, providing convenient access to services for veterans who may live far from major VA facilities.

The federal VA system provides healthcare, disability compensation, education benefits under the GI Bill, and home loan guarantees to eligible veterans, including those who served in the National Guard when activated under federal orders. Guard members who have questions about their eligibility for specific VA benefits should consult a Veterans Service Officer (VSO), who can provide free, expert assistance in navigating the claims process.

Mental health resources are a particular priority given the psychological costs of sustained combat exposure. The Veterans Crisis Line (988, press 1) provides immediate, confidential support for veterans in crisis. The VA's mental health programs, including PTSD treatment, substance abuse counseling, and transition assistance, are available to eligible veterans. The Oklahoma National Guard also maintains behavioral health specialists at the unit level to support currently serving members.

Veterans' service organizations including the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Disabled American Veterans, and the Oklahoma National Guard Association provide peer support, advocacy, and community connection that is often as important as any formal benefit program. Connecting with fellow veterans who have shared similar experiences can be a powerful element of long-term recovery and well-being for those who carried the weight of service into their post-military lives.