21 Tulsa Area Marines Return Home

21 Marines are back from Iraq after seven months overseas. <br/><br/>It ends a long journey that included tragedy. The Marines are attached to the Anti-Tank Training Company based out of Broken Arrow.

Monday, October 23rd 2006, 2:16 pm

By: News On 6

21 Marines are back from Iraq after seven months overseas.

It ends a long journey that included tragedy. The Marines are attached to the Anti-Tank Training Company based out of Broken Arrow. And while the families were happy to be reunited, for some the welcome was bittersweet.

Family and friends waited late Monday night at Tulsa International Airport. The Marines arrived just before midnight.

During their deployment, they helped train the Iraqi Security Forces and conducted security operations. Thanks to a text message, one father says he knew his son was on his way home. Wally Whaling: "we got the text message it said "in Germany", that was the key, two words in the text message on the phone, about four, five hours later, six hours later we get another message "in America" that did it, that was the number one."

Many of the men we talked to say they were upset about the loss of several Marines while in Iraq. Corporal Jared Shoemaker who was also a Tulsa Police officer was killed by a roadside bomb back in September. Cody Hill, also from Oklahoma, was injured in that attack.

We're told the Marines are home for a while. They are unsure when and if they'll be sent back because new orders have not yet been announced.