Reserve general backs 100th patch
By Karen Blakeman
Advertiser Staff Writer
Members of the 100th Battalion, 442nd Infantry — the Army Reserve unit with historical links to the highly decorated unit of World War II — will not be wearing their distinctive unit patch when they deploy to Iraq, according to the one-star general who commands the 29th Separate Infantry Brigade.
But the top general in the U.S. Army Reserve, who visited the unit in Hawai'i this week, has said he will fight to keep the 100th Battalion patch on the shoulders of his troops.
100th Battalion/442nd
29th Infantry Brigade
"It is my position that they should be allowed to continue wearing the patch," Lt. Gen. James R. Helmly, chief of the Army Reserve, said Monday. "I'll take it to my superiors, if I have to."
Hawai'i National Guard Brig. Gen. Joe Chaves, commander of the the 29th Infantry Brigade, met with Helmly yesterday and discussed the patch, said Maj. Chuck Anthony, a spokesman for the Guard and for the 29th Infantry Brigade.
Chaves didn't change his mind: The unit will wear the 29th Infantry patch instead of its own.
"Everyone in the brigade wears the same patch," Anthony said. "When you are serving in a war, and you are attached to a higher headquarters, you wear the patch of the higher headquarters."
The 100th Battalion, 442nd Infantry, is the only battalion-sized Army unit authorized its own unit patch, Anthony said. The privilege was granted in the mid-1950s in recognition of the unit's distinguished World War II service. Composed of Japanese-American soldiers working to overcome prejudice in their own country, the 100th Battalion, attached to the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, quickly became known as one of the best fighting units in Europe. The 442nd remains the most decorated unit of its size in Army history.
Ray Nosaka, a World War II veteran of the 100th Battalion, said the ties between the veterans and younger soldiers remain tight.
"They sing our song," he said. "They make us feel so good. I think they should wear their own patch — wear the name of the 100th Battalion proudly. They deserve it."
The controversy for the Army Reserve unit arose after it was activated last month and ordered to prepare for service in Iraq as part of the 29th Brigade, headquartered in Hawai'i.
Chaves, as commander of the brigade, said he wants all 29th Infantry units — from Hawai'i, California, Oregon and American Samoa — to wear the same uniform and the same patch.
"He'll build a team from those different units from different parts of the world to work as a well-oiled machine," Anthony said.
"Together — one Army, one fight, one uniform. That is his philosophy and — by the way — it happens to mesh with the Army's regulations."
Helmly said the 100th Battalion will work hard for Chaves, but will gain their strength through identification with each other and their history.
"They are a proud unit and they have a storied history," he said. "They will fight tenaciously for the 29th Infantry, but what will keep them alive in combat is small-unit bonding and teamwork."
Of his resolve that they should wear their own patch, Helmly said: "I'll carry it up the chain of command."
Lt. Col. Alan Ostermiller, commander of the 100th Battalion, said he told his men that one way or another, the patch will go to war with them.
"I told them we will put in our pockets," he said, "and wear it close to our hearts."
Reach Karen Blakeman at 535-2430 or kblakeman@honoluluadvertiser.com
