Minnesota Army Reserve Soldiers Prep For Postal Mission In Middle East

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Some Minnesota Army Reserve soldiers are ready to deploy on a mission to the Middle East.

They had a deployment ceremony Sunday at the Minneapolis-Saint Paul Joint Air Reserve Station. Their mission involves handling postal operations for troops. They understand that mail is really important to their fellow soldiers.

WCCO spoke with 1st Lt. Luke Defenderfer and Sgt. Ruby Hernandez.

"When you're separated from your family, it's something different when you're holding the handwriting from your wife, from your child, it's something different than getting an email or getting something digital, and you can't replace that feeling," Defenderfer said.

"Receiving that little package can change the outcome of your whole entire week. It can make you feel more lively, it can give you the boost of energy that you need, it can give you the motivation to keep going, and just gives you a lot more than people think it does," Hernandez said.

The units will be deploying in the next few weeks.