The official military welcome home ceremony for the 211th Military Police Company, North Carolina Army National Guard, will be held this Sunday, Nov. 3 at 2 p.m. in the Student Center auditorium on the campus of Haywood Community College, 185 Freedlander Dr., Clyde, North Carolina.

The 211th deployed 106 of its soldiers to Kandahar and Bagram, Afghanistan in February after being called to active duty just before the holiday season last year. While in Southwest Asia, the unit guarded Taliban and al-Qaeda detainees in holding facilities there. The soldiers returned to North Carolina in September and were released from active duty Oct. 18. The unit is headquartered in Clyde with a detachment in East Flat Rock.

Tracing its roots back to the early 1900's, the 211th MP Co. typically operates incarceration facilities for prisoners of war and other military detainees. The unit has a long history including service in World War I and World War II where the unit received a Presidential Unit Citation for action in France. More recently, the unit was activated in 1990 for service in Operations Desert Shield and Storm.

Representatives of the media are cordially invited and encouraged to attend the ceremony. Members of the unit will be available for interview.

DIRECTIONS to HAYWOOD COMMUNITY COLLEGE: From Asheville, take I-40 west, approximately 20.5 miles to Exit 27 (US 19/23/74, Clyde/Waynesville). Take Exit 107 (Jones Cove Road) and merge immediately to left lane. At the bottom of the hill, turn left on to Jones Cove Road. Haywood Community College's entrance is on the left when the road splits into a "Y". The Student Center is the first building on the left.