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*Marines depart for duty, Local reserve unit says goodbye to friends and family; deployment to Iraq in October expected to last seven months

FREDERICK -- Though the Marines who left Frederick early Monday would soon don uniforms and deploy to Iraq, for a short time that morning they weren't only Marines, but also sons, husbands, brothers and friends.

http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/news/display.htm?storyid=52609

By Alison Walker-Baird
News-Post Staff
Published on September 26, 2006

Dressed in street clothes, the Marines said their goodbyes and hugged family and friends -- even a golden retriever -- at the Pfc. Flair U.S. Army Reserve Center before dawn.

About 120 Marines in the Frederick-based unit boarded a bus and van for the seven-hour ride to North Carolina, where they will complete administrative procedures before deploying in October. Officials in the unit have not yet released the exact departure date and location.