The 849th MAC National Guard left for Iraq duty on June 7, 2007. The evening before, the Litchfield Civic Center was filled to standing room only as area communities gave their soldiers a rousing send-off. 29 Patriot Guard Riders attended the ceremony, and received a standing ovation when entering the Civic Center to form a flag line on both sides of the podium, and were thanked again by the National Guard at the beginning of the program. PGR members and National Guardsmen Sgt. Willie Puckett and Spc. Greg Brown, presented a signed Patriot Guard flag to the unit to take with to Iraq.