186th Infantry Regiment ( United States ) The 186th Infantry Regiment is a combat regiment of the United States Army made up of soldiers from the Oregon Army National Guard . The 1st battalion of the regiment is currently active and as of February 2007 stateside , however , individual members are in Iraq as replacements for other active duty units . The 1 / 186th ' s higher headquarters is the 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team , headquartered in Tigard , Oregon . Its higher headquarters , in turn , is the 40th Infantry Division History . The 186th Infantry Regiment was constituted on 7 December 1921 , as a separate Battalion in the Oregon Army National Guard . By 31 March 1922 , it was re - designated the 1st Battalion , 186th Infantry , and was made up of companies from Gresham , Portland , Hood River , Cottage Grove and Medford . World War II . For nearly twenty years , soldiers of the Regiment conducted normal peacetime training , but then , in 1940 , they were inducted into Federal service for a year of training . When war broke out with the attack on Pearl Harbor , the year extended into ' the duration ' of World War II . The 186th , as a part of the 41st Infantry Division , was one of the first American Combat units to be sent overseas . The Regiment served in the Pacific Theater , with the first year spent in further training in Australia . Papua - New Guinea was the site of the Regiment ' s first combat . Working with the other Regiments of the Division and elements of the Australian Army , the 186th helped overcome difficult resistance by Japanese troops . The Papuan campaign lasted from early January into September 1943 . The Regiment landed in New Guinea in April 1944 and helped secure that archipelago by late July . Following reorganization , the effort shifted to the invasion of the Philippines . The 186th went ashore on Palawan Island , in the southern Philippines , in February , 1945 . That campaign lasted for the remainder of the war . With the 186th scheduled to take part in the invasion of Japan , planned for November , the end of the war allowed the Regiment to enter Japan peacefully , as occupation troops instead . In December 1945 , the Regiment , and the 41st Division , were deactivated in Japan , and left active service . Post - World War II . The Regiment was re - organized in December 1946 , with Headquarters originally located in Portland . In 1968 , another re - organization reduced the Regiment to a single Battalion , and Headquarters was moved to Ashland . Units are currently located in Ashland , Medford , Grants Pass , Roseburg and Klamath Falls . The primary mission since World War II has been to train for war , though no units have been mobilized for a war mission since that time . Training takes place locally most of the year . The two week annual training normally is conducted at Ft . Lewis , Washington ; Camp Roberts , CA , or Camp Rilea , OR . Companies have also traveled to England and Japan for training , and the entire 41st Brigade trained at JRTC in Louisiana in 1998 . Members of the 1st Battalion have also been mobilized to fight forest fires or provide assistance during floods . The increasing need for troops to supplement active Army missions has also resulted in the first federal mobilization of one of the Battalion ' s rifle companies since World War II . As a result , Bravo company spent four months near Riyadh , Saudi Arabia , to provide security for Patriot missile batteries . As of mid - April 2002 , the 1 - 186th Infantry was preparing to deploy for a six - month rotation and assume peacekeeping duties in the Sinai region of Egypt in July 2002 , as part of the U . S . portion of the Multinational Force and Observers ( MFO ) mission . The unit was slated to replace the active - duty 172nd Separate Infantry Brigade out of Fort Wainwright , Alaska , which had originally been tasked to provide one of its battalions for the next MFO rotation . The switch was to enable freeing an active - duty unit for other missions related to the War on Terrorism if needed , and marked only the second time a reserve - component unit has been called upon to perform the Sinai mission . As of mid - April 2002 , the 1 - 186th was scheduled to train at Fort Carson , CO , for the last of its mobilization requirements in May , and formally assume the U . S . portion of the MFO mission in July . The 1st Battalion , 186th Infantry sent one company from Roseburg , Oregon to Iraq in 2003 as part of the 2nd Battalion , 162nd Infantry . In 2005 the battalion deployed to Louisiana to conduct disaster relief operations following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita . The battalion also sent a company from Medford , Oregon to Afghanistan in 2006 with the 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team as part of Combined Joint Task Force Phoenix V . In 2009 the battalion deployed to Iraq . Headquartered at Ali Air Base near Tallil , Iraq , it conducted convoy security operations as part of Multi - National Forces - Iraq and the 13th Expeditionary Sustainment Command . One company was detached to Camp Korean Village in the western desert , and the battalion had two additional companies attached to it : the 1055th Transportation Company from South Carolina and the 720th Convoy Security Company from New Mexico . The battalion returned from the deployment in April , 2010 . A Gold color metal and enamel device in height overall consisting of a shield blazoned : Azure a tower ( with doors partly opened ) Argent masoned Or debruised by two dexter arms embowed fessways the forearms in saltire habited in chain armor each hand grasping a sword of the last the swords crossed in saltire . On a chief of the third a rose Gules barbed and seeded Proper . Attached below and to the sides of the shield a Blue scroll inscribed “ CUSTODES ? PORTAE ? OCCIDENTIS ” in Gold letters . The rose is the general flower of the Northwest . The two arms interlocked are indicative of military strength , ready to strike at an enemy who endeavors to enter the United States through the “ Western Gate ” ( represented by the gateway in the tower ) . They further allude to the fact that the parent organization , the 186th Infantry Regiment , had elements in both Idaho and Oregon . The motto translates to “ Guards of the Western Gate . ” The distinctive unit insignia was approved on 18 May 1925 . Azure a tower ( with doors partly opened ) Gray masoned Sable debruised by two dexter arms embowed fessways the forearms in saltire habited in chain armor each hand grasping a sword Or hilted Sable the swords crossed in saltire . On a chief of the fourth a rose Gules barbed and seeded Proper . That for the regiments and separate battalions of the Oregon Army National Guard : On a wreath of the colors Or and Azure , a demi - disc Gules charged with the setting sun with twelve light rays Or ( the shoulder sleeve insignia of the 41st Division ) , behind a beaver sejant Proper . Coat of arms . Blazon . Motto " Custodes Portae Occidents " ( Guardians of the Western Gates ) The rose is the general flower of the Northwest . The two arms interlocked are indicative of military strength , ready to strike at an enemy who endeavors to enter the United States through the “ Western Gate ” ( represented by the gateway in the tower ) . They further allude to the fact that the parent organization , the 186th Infantry Regiment , had elements in both Idaho and Oregon . The crest is that of the Oregon Army National Guard . Background . The coat of arms was approved on 28 May 1924 . It was amended to delete the crest for the State of Idaho on 22 April 1949 .