Local National Guard member; Pa. Task Force receive special honors overseas

Erie, Pa. ( WJET/WFXP ) — After 300 local National Guard members were called up for deployment to the Horn of Africa back in December 2023, one Fairview native and the entire Task Force receive an honor overseas.

A promotion ceremony was held for Fairview native Sergeant 1st Class Anthony Kulyk at Manda Bay in Kenya on March 21st. He spent most of his career with the Cambridge Springs-based 1st Battalion, 112 Infantry Regiment, 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team.

Kulyk leads the medical section at the 1-112 Battalion as Platoon Sergeant. Now on deployment in the Horn of Africa, he is serving as the Senior Task Force Medic and Medical Operations noncommissioned officer.

He is currently on his second deployment and first combat deployment. Not only is he protecting us overseas, but he also helps save people in the region as a longtime Fairview Fire and Rescue Fire Fighter and EMT.

More honors were also handed out on March 21st to the deployed National Guard Soldiers.

The Pa. Soldiers from Task Force Paxton earned their combat patch, and with the blazing African sun shining down on them, the soldiers were officially awarded their Insignia Military Operations in Hostile Conditions patch. The soldiers that make up the Task Force are drawn from nine separate companies across Pennsylvania.

Lieutenant Colonel Eric Ponzek led one of the most memorable moments for a soldier known as the Patching Ceremony. Ponzek speaks to the soldiers explaining the history of the 28th Infantry Division and the significance of the patch.

The Red Keystone, which is the official emblem signifying the 28th Infantry Division, was commonly referred to as “the Bloody Bucket” by the Germans in World War II due to its shape and red color.

The last time the unit was awarded this patch was 15 years ago and can now proudly wear the Keystone on their right sleeve, below their American flag.

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