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Families Distressed About Extended Tour of Duty

By Alabama Public Radio

Fairhope, AL – One Alabama National Guard unit will be spending a few extra months in Iraq. The group had planned to come home next month, but the Pentagon now won't bring the soldiers home until August or September. The delay appears to have strained some soldiers' families. Hospital worker Rose Wilson says she's trying to stay positive. Her husband, Staff Sergeant Anthony Wilson, serves in the Fairhope-based 11-65th Military Police Company. Rose says her husband has already missed some important family events, including their 16-year-old daughter's birthday and high school prom. Rose Wilson says she was "shocked" when her husband's unit was ordered to stay in Iraq another 90-to-120 days. The chairperson of the Guard's Family Readiness Group says most of the unit's families have reacted angrily to the news.

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