116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team ( United States ) The 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team was formerly known as the 1st Brigade , 29th Infantry Division . It is currently assigned to the Virginia Army National Guard . The brigade is headquartered in Staunton , Virginia , at the Thomas Howie Memorial Armory . History . The regiment was formed as part of the Virginia Militia . They were called into federal service during both World Wars , and for service in the Balkans , Afghanistan , and Iraq wars . The regiment traces its lineage back to the famed Confederate States of America Stonewall Brigade of the Army of Northern Virginia . The regiment in its previous form as a Virginia unit was redesignated on 9 March 1922 as the 116th Infantry and assigned to the 29th Division ( later redesignated as the 29th Infantry Division ) . Its headquarters was federally recognized 3 April 1922 at Staunton . Later the Location of Headquarters was changed 26 June 1933 to Lynchburg . During the Second World War , the 116th took part in the Invasion of Normandy , by spearheading the assault on Omaha Beach , for the rest of the 29th Infantry Division . The regiment suffered 341 casualties , including soldiers from A Company , which lost 96 % of their men within the first 10 minutes of landing on Omaha Beach . During a move from Les Moulins , the 2nd Battalion broke loose from the beach and fought their way to a farmhouse to become the first command post in France . The 116th with the rest of its division , then advanced on St . Lo . Despite heavy casualties , and despite stiff resistance in the Bocage , the 116th reached St . Lo . And after fierce and bloody house to house fighting , what was left of the French town was finally captured from German defenders on July 18 . The regiment then took part in the capture of Brest , and by September had moved east to attack spots on the Siegfried Line . The 29th Infantry Division was the first unit to reach the Roer River , where it remained until February 23 . The entire division crossed the Roer in effort to support assaults on the Ruhr Pocket . By April 19 the 116th reached the Elbe River , and just a few days later made contact with the Soviet forces moving in from the East . On 1 November 2002 , the 2nd Battalion , 116th Infantry Regiment was mobilized for deployment to Guantanamo Bay , Cuba to take part in Operation Enduring Freedom . This marked the first mobilization of a battalion of the 29th Infantry Division since World War II . The unit provided security of the base and Camp Delta , the detainee operations camp . On 1 March 2004 , the 3rd Battalion , 116th Infantry Regiment was mobilized for deployment to Afghanistan to take part in Operation Enduring Freedom . Members of the battalion reported to armories around Virginia and began arriving at Bagram Air Field in Afghanistan on 15 July 2004 . They were quickly engaged in operations . The battalion conducted combat operations in Ghazni and SECFOR operations at Bagram Airfield . Numerous slice elements were placed under the operational control of the battalion . The newly formed task force assumed the name of the beaches the regiment stormed more than 60 years prior – Normandy . During the deployment two 116th Infantry soldiers were killed by a roadside bomb , the first Virginia National Guard soldiers to die in combat since World War II . The battalion returned to the United States in July 2005 . In August 2006 , the 1st Battalion mobilized in support of KFOR as part of the 29th Infantry Division to provide stability operations in the Serbian province of Kosovo with NATO . They become known as Task Force Red Dragon for the duration of their deployment . In 2007 , the Brigade Special Troops Battalion , 116th BCT of the Virginia Army National Guard replaced the 229th Engineer Battalion . The unit is headquartered in Fredericksburg , Virginia . " Troops Forward " is the unit ' s motto . The BSTB comprises an HHC with platoons of Infantry , Support ( Medical , Food Service and Transportation ) , Chemical , Military Police , Supply , Mechanics , Cavalry , Logistics and Administration . There are 3 other Company ' s in the BSTB : an Engineering , Military Intelligence and Signal Company . In May 2007 , the Brigade Headquarters Company mobilized in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom . Headquarters Company was stationed on the International Zone and did not suffer any casualties . In June 2007 , the 2d Squadron , 183rd Cavalry Regiment ; the 3d Battalion , 116th Infantry Regiment ; and Company F , 429th Brigade Support Battalion were deployed to Iraq and Kuwait . Companies A , B , and C of the 3d Battalion , 116th Infantry Regiment successfully conducted convoy security patrols throughout Iraq . HHC & Co D , 3 – 116th , 2 – 183rd CAV , and F / 429th conducted security force missions in Kuwait and Southern Iraq for strategically vital assets ; to include 2 - 183rd CAV Trops A and C , with HQ and Colorado Guard components completing several extended roadside and personal security , surveillance and mercy missions , and numerous combat patrols throughout Kuwait and Southern Iraq provinces and along oil pipelines outside Basrah . The Purple Heart was awarded during the deployment for taking shrapnel from sniper fire , and the Iraq Campaign Medal was issued for those members serving in the Iraq theater of operations . In January 2010 , the first battalion mobilized with the Louisiana National Guard ' s 256th IBCT to Iraq and conducted convoy security missions in southern Iraq . Known at TF Overlord , a tribute the unit ' s D - Day heritage , the unit includes the Headquarters Company from Lynchburg , VA ; Company A from Bedford , VA ; Company B from Lexington , VA ; Company C from Christiansburg , VA ; and Company D from Pulaski , VA . The battalion was commanded by LTC E . Scott Smith of Lynchburg , VA . The unit returned with no losses in September 2010 . In May 2011 , the Brigade Headquarters Company ( HHC ) plus the UAV Platoon ( B / 116 BSTB ) were mobilized in support of Operation Enduring Freedom . Approximately 185 Soldiers were mobilized for this deployment . They served as the control element for Combined Team Zabul in Zabul Province , Afghanistan . During their deployment the HHC directed a mix of US Active Duty and National Guard units as well as Romanian units in continuing operations in Zabul Province . They were commanded by COL Blake Ortner and suffered no combat casualties during the deployment . The brigade HHC returned to the US and demobilized at the beginning of January 2012 . In June 2011 , Task Force 183 ( TF183 ) mobilized to support Operation New Dawn . This was the largest mobilization of the Virginia Army National Guard since WWII , consisting of 825 soldiers . TF183 comprised most of the 2d Squadron , 183d Cavalry Regiment plus elements of the 116th BSTB , 116th BSB , 1 - 116 Infantry and D Co 3 - 116 Infantry . TF183 returned to the US and demobilized in December 2011 . Current Units . 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team consists of the following elements : Insignia . The brigade had its own shoulder patch which was most recently worn in 2006 – 2008 . The shoulder sleeve insignia depicted Thomas " Stonewall " Jackson mounted on his horse , a reference to the 116th ' s lineage as the Stonewall Brigade . The shoulder sleeve insignia was originally approved for the 116th Infantry Brigade on 26 May 1978 . The patch ' s nickname is " Stony on a Pony . " When the 29th Infantry Division was reactivated in 1985 , the brigade was assigned to the division and began wearing the division shoulder patch . Following the Army ' s reorganization of combat divisions in 2005 into brigade - centric units , ARNG brigades within divisions began wearing brigade patches as Department of the Army policy . Reportedly the 116th BCT has returned to wearing the division shoulder patch . On an oblong shield curved at top and bottom , in width and in height overall , a gray silhouette representative of the Stonewall Jackson Monument at Manassas Battlefield Park , Virginia , on a blue background all within a white border . The equestrian figure is a representation of the General Thomas J . Jackson Monument at Manassas where he gained the nickname “ Stonewall . ” The colors blue and gray refer to the rich heritage of the state of Virginia and blue and white are the colors associated with the Infantry Branch . The shoulder sleeve insignia was originally approved for the 116th Infantry Brigade on 26 May 1978 . It was redesignated for the 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team with the description updated on 7 April 2006 . The insignia was cancelled effective 1 April 2007 , when the unit became a Brigade of a Division . ( TIOH Drawing Number A - 1 - 621 ) A gold color metal and enamel device in width overall consisting of a quartered square placed point up , the vertical quarters gray , horizontal quarters blue , and centered thereon a scarlet arrowhead point up , the lower sides of the square enclosed by two gold branches of laurel issuant from lower center and terminating below the outer petals of two blue fleurs - de - lis issuant from the upper sides of the square , the laurel branches contained in base by a curving blue scroll inscribed with the words “ RALLY ON THE VIRGINIANS ” in gold letters . The blue and gray square at center refers to four years of Civil War participation , with the gray in the vertical quarters indicating Confederate service . The two fleurs - de - lis denote service in World War I and II and the scarlet arrowhead is in honor of the unit ’ s participation in the assault landing at Normandy . The two branches of laurel symbolize awards of both the Presidential Unit Citation and the French Croix de Guerre with Palm for the unit ’ s Normandy Beachhead participation . The motto is a reference to the Civil War First Battle of Manassas where General Barnard Bee , on seeing General Jackson “ standing like a stone wall , ” encouraged his faltering troops to “ Rally on the Virginians . ” From that time on Jackson was known as “ Stonewall ” and his brigade as the “ Stonewall Brigade . ” The distinctive unit insignia was originally approved for the 116th Infantry Brigade on 24 April 1979 . It was amended to change the reference in the symbolism on 15 July 1980 . The insignia was redesignated for the 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team with the description updated on 7 April 2006 . It was cancelled effective 1 April 2007 , when the unit became a Brigade of a Division .