National Guard hopes open houses provide education for public

National Guard Armories in Cape Girardeau and Perryville will hold open houses Saturday for the purpose of public awareness, education and recruitment.

National Guard Sgt. 1st Class Dan Eagan, formerly of Company B 1140th Engineer Battalion, now named 880th Engineer Team, said that since the unit has been deployed a lot during recent years it has not held an open house in quite a while, maybe since 1997. "This will be a display of the unit allowing the public to check us out," said Eagan.

Restructuring within the National Guard to meet Army needs for deployment resulted in Perryville's official name change earlier in October. The 880th Engineer Team will follow the command of the 1140th Battalion. Their duties have changed from engineering to operating and hauling heavy equipment.

Pair of open houses

The Army National Guard in Perryville will hold its open house from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Saturday. The Army National Guard in Cape Girardeau, 2626 Independence St., will hold its open house from 3 to 6 p.m. Saturday.

Refreshments will be available to the public. Military vehicles and weapons displays as well as unit history and uniforms will be available for public viewing. Questions regarding benefits and information about the Army National Guard will be answered. The National Guard is also offering enlistment bonuses and tuition assistance for college.

The Perryville armory will have an Apache attack helicopter on display, weather permitting. Games for children will also be available at this facility.

For more information call the Cape Girardeau National Guard Armory at 339-6217 or Perryville National Guard Armory at 547-4552.