35th Infantry Regiment ( United States ) The 35th Infantry Regiment ( " Cacti " ) was created on 1 July 1916 at Douglas , Arizona from elements of the 11th , 18th and 22nd Infantry Regiments . The 35th served on the Mexican Border during the First World War and was stationed at Nogales , Arizona in 1918 . It fought a border skirmish on 27 August 1918 during the Battle of Ambos Nogales . In World War II , Korea , and Vietnam it served as part of the 25th Infantry ( Tropic Lighting ) Division . As of 2012 , the only active element of the regiment is the 2nd Battalion , which is assigned to the 3rd Brigade Combat Team ( Infantry ) , 25th Infantry Division . Regimental arms . The regiment ' s coat of arms and its distinctive unit insignia are a living tribute to the 35th Infantry Regiment . The regiment was originally formed in Arizona from elements of the 11th , 18th , and 22d Infantry Regiments . These organizations are represented on the canton of the crest , in the upper left - hand corner . The white Maltese cross represents the 11th Regiment , the red acorn represents the 18th Regiment , and the embattled partition line of the canton represents the 22nd Regiment . The cactus represents the original service along the Mexican border against the bandits of Pancho Villa . Motto . The regimental motto is " " Take Arms ! " " During the Battle of Ambos Nogales in 1918 when the alarm went out , officers , non - commissioned officers and soldiers shouted out , " Take Arms ! Take Arms ! " Mission . The current mission statement of the regiment is the same as that of the 25th Infantry : On order , 25th ID redeploys , resets , and deploys trained forces to contingencies and operations worldwide to accomplish all assigned tasks in support of a designated Joint Force Commander . World War I . The 35th Infantry Regiment was stationed at Nogales , Arizona on 27 August 1918 , when at about 4 : 10 pm , a gun battle erupted unintentionally when a Mexican civilian attempted to pass through the border , back to Mexico , without being interrogated at the U . S . Customs house . After the initial shooting , reinforcements from both sides rushed to the border line . Hostilities quickly escalated and several soldiers were killed and others wounded . The U . S . 35th Infantry border post had about 15 – 18 men and requested reinforcements from their garrison . When they arrived they requested the Buffalo Soldier s of the 10th Cavalry . The 10th , commanded by Frederick Herman , came to their aid from their camp outside of town . After observing the situation for a few moments , Lt Colonel Herman ordered an attack on the Mexican and German held hilltops overlooking the border town . Defensive trenches and machine gun placements had been seen being dug there in the previous weeks . Herman wanted Americans there before Mexican reinforcements got there . Under heavy fire , the U . S . 35th Regiment infantry soldiers and dismounted 10th Cavalry troops advanced across the Mexican - American border through the buildings and streets of Nogales , Sonora and up onto the nearby hilltops . This was done while other units of the 35th Regiment held the main line near the border post . About 7 : 45 pm , the Mexicans waved a large white flag of surrender over their customs building . Lt . Colonel Herman observed and then ordered an immediate cease fire . Snipers on both sides continued shooting for a little while after the cease fire , but were eventually silenced upon orders from their superiors . World War II . The 35th Regiment was attached to the 25th Infantry Division in Hawaii . It was sent to Guadalcanal , 25 November 1942 , to relieve Marines near Henderson Field . First elements landed near the Tenaru River , 17 December 1942 , and entered combat , 10 January 1943 , participating in the seizure of Kokumbona and the reduction of the Mount Austen Pocket in some of the bitterest fighting of the Pacific campaign . With other units on 5 February 1943 it helped end organized enemy resistance . A period of garrison duty followed , ending 21 July : On that date , advance elements debarked on Munda , New Georgia . The 35th Infantry , under the Northern Landing Force , took part in the capture of Vella Lavella , 15 August to 15 September 1943 . Organized resistance on New Georgia ended , 25 August , and the division moved to New Zealand for rest and training , last elements arriving on 5 December . The 25th was transferred to New Caledonia , 3 February – 14 March 1944 , for continued training . The division landed in the San Fabian area of Luzon , 11 January 1945 , to enter the struggle for the liberation of the Philippines . It drove across the Luzon Central Plain , meeting the enemy at Binalonan , 17 January . Moving through the rice paddies , the 25th occupied Umingan , Lupao , and San Jose and destroyed a great part of the Japanese armor on Luzon . On 21 February , the division began operations in the Caraballo Mountains . It fought its way along Highway No . 5 , taking Digdig , Putlan , and Kapintalan against fierce enemy counterattacks and took Balete Pass , 13 May , and opened the gateway to the Cagayan Valley , 27 May , with the capture of Santa Fe . Until 30 June , when the division was relieved , it carried out mopping - up activities . On 1 July , the division moved to Tarlac for training , leaving for Japan , 20 September . At the end of the war the 35th was involved with occupation duty in Japan . The regiment had three Medal of Honor recipients during World War II , William G . Fournier , Lewis R . Hall and Charles L . McGaha . Korean War . Open warfare once again flared in Asia , now the 25th division ' s primary area of concern , on 25 June 1950 . The North Korean People ' s Army crossed the 38th Parallel on that day in an attack on the Republic of Korea ( South Korea ) . Acting under United Nations orders , the Tropic Lightning Division moved from its base in Japan to Korea between 5 – 18 July 1950 . The 35th fought out of the Pusan perimeter and was part of the successful drive into North Korea in October 1950 . In a sudden and unexpected reversal , however , an overwhelming number of Chinese Communist troops crossed the Yalu and pushed back United Nations forces all along the front . The 35th Regiment was forced to carry out a systematic withdrawal and ordered to take up defensive positions on the south bank of the Chongchon River 30 November 1950 . Eventually , these lines failed . However , after a series of short withdrawals a permanent battle line was established south of Osan . Then followed the see - saw battles that finally evolved into static warfare along the Iron Triangle into 1952 . The 35th Regiment with the rest of the 25th Infantry Division assumed the responsibility of guarding the approaches of Seoul 5 May 1953 . 23 days later , a heavy Chinese assault was hurled at it . The division held its ground and the assault was repulsed ; the brunt of the attack was absorbed by the 14th Infantry Regiment ( " Golden Dragons " ) . By successfully defending Seoul from continued attack from May to July 1953 , the division earned its second Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation . Again negotiators moved toward peace . In July , the division again moved to reserve status at Camp Casey where it remained through the signing of the armistice 27 July 1953 . Fourteen division soldiers were awarded Medals of Honor during the Korean War , making the division one of the most decorated US Army divisions of that war . The regiment remained in Korea until 1954 and returned to Hawaii from September through October of that year . After a 12 - year absence , the 25th Infantry Division had finally returned home . The 35th Infantry Regiment had three Medal of Honor recipients in Korea , William R . Jecelin , Billie G . Kanell and Donald R . Moyer . Vietnam . In August 1965 , the 35th Regiment started their rotation into the Vietnam War , arriving in South Vietnam . They went to the central highlands at Pleiku . Final units arrived by Christmas 1965 . The regiment was heavily engaged from April 1966 until 1972 throughout the area of operations in Southeast Asia . During this period , 25th Division Tropic Lightning soldiers fought in some of the toughest battles of the war . During the Tet offensive s of 1968 and 1969 , Tropic Lightning soldiers were instrumental in defending the besieged city of Saigon . Due to its success in fending off that attack , the 25th Infantry Division spent most of 1970 more involved in the Vietnamization Program than in actual combat . From May through June 1970 , The 35th Regiment and the rest of the Tropic Lightning soldiers participated in Allied thrusts deep into enemy sanctuaries located in Cambodia . In these Incursion operations , the division units confiscated thousands of tons of supplies and hundreds of weapons . This operation crippled the Cambodian - based efforts against American units . Following its return from Cambodia to South Vietnam , the division resumed its place in the Vietnamization Program . The war was winding down . By late December 1970 , elements of the 35th Infantry were able to begin redeployment to Schofield Barracks . During the war in Vietnam , 22 Medals of Honor were awarded to Tropic Lightning soldiers . The 35th Infantry Regiment had three Medal of Honor recipients in Vietnam , Stephen Karopczyc , Ronald Eric Ray and Kenneth E . Stumpf . Reorganization and ' light infantry ' status . After its return to Schofield Barracks , the 35th Infantry Regiment became a cadre unit due to the overall military downsizing and was part of a single brigade numbering 4 , 000 men . The 25th Division was reactivated in March 1972 . The 35th Infantry trained for the next eight years throughout the Pacific Theater and continued to improve its combat capabilities with troop deployment varying in size from squads , who participated in training missions with Fijian forces , to exercises as large as Team Spirit , where more than 5 , 000 divisional troops and 1700 pieces of equipment were airlifted to South Korea for this annual exercise . In 1985 , the 35th Infantry with the rest of the 25th Division began its reorganization from a conventional infantry division to a light infantry division . The four primary characteristics of this new light infantry division were to be : mission flexibility , rapid deployment and combat readiness at 100 percent strength with a Pacific Basin orientation . The 25th Infantry Division earned the designation " light " — the reorganization was completed by 1 October 1986 . In 1988 , the 35th Infantry participated in rotations at the Joint Readiness Training Center , Fort Chaffee , Arkansas . This training center provides the most realistic training available to light forces in the Army . Coupled with Joint / Combined training exercises Cobra Gold in Thailand , Kangaroo in Australia and Orient Shield in Japan , the 25th Division ' s demanding exercise schedule significantly increased the division ' s fighting capabilities . Until 1993 Operation Team Spirit in Korea remained the division ' s largest annual maneuver exercise , involving more than half of the division ' s strength . Desert Storm and post - Cold War . The 35th Regiment units did not participate in Operation Desert Storm , due to the 25th Division being earmarked for Pacific contingencies , such as a renewal of hostilities in Korea . In 1995 , the 25th Division underwent another reorganization and reduction as a part of the Army ' s downsizing , but most elements of the 35th Infantry were maintained . In early 2005 , an airborne brigade was created at Fort Richardson , Alaska and added to the 25th . Today the " Tropic Lightning " Division is composed of the 1st and 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Teams ( based in Fort Wainwright , Alaska and Schofield Barracks , Hawaii , respectively ) , the 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team ( Schofield Barracks ) and The 4th Airborne Brigade Combat Team ( based at Fort Richardson , Alaska ) , in addition to the Combat Aviation Brigade . As a major ground reserve force for the U . S . Pacific Command , the " Tropic Lightning " Division routinely deploys from Schofield Barracks to participate in exercises in Japan , Korea , Thailand , the Philippines , Australia and the Big Island of Hawaii . Transformation and War on Terror . The 35th Infantry and the 3rd Brigade did not take part in the fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq from 2001 – 2003 . The 3rd Brigade , 25th Infantry Division began deploying in the divisional second stage to Afghanistan in March 2004 . The 25th Infantry Division redeployed to Schofield Barracks Hawaii in April 2005 . One of the missions of the 3rd Brigade was to track down insurgent Taliban and Al - Qaeda members in the mountainous terrain of Afghanistan . In 2005 , the 35th Infantry Regiment as part of the 3rd Brigade began its transformation as a unit of action ( UA ) . The ( Light ) status was dropped from the 25th Division name in January 2006 . As of March 2009 , the 35th Infantry as part of the 3rd Brigade are deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom . In June – August 2009 , the 25th Division was deployed in Operation Champion Sword . From March 2011 – March 2012 , the 35th Infantry Regiment was deployed to RC East , Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom . Regimental honors . The regiment has received the following unit awards : History . The 35th Infantry regimental history dates from 1916 . ( 35th Infantry assigned 7 August 1918 to the 18th Division ; relieved 14 February 1919 from assignment to the 18th Division ; assigned 17 October 1922 to the Hawaiian Division ; relieved 1 October 1941 from assignment to the Hawaiian Division and assigned to the 25th Infantry Division ) Campaign history . Campaign participation credits ; World War II Korean War Vietnam