A send-off ceremony will be held in Bangor on Saturday for a group of soldiers in the Maine National Guard who will deploy to Poland later this month.

The 69 members of the 286th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion will be supporting Operation Atlantic Resolve and will not return until early 2020, Maj. Gen. Douglas A. Farnham said in March.

U.S. units have been supporting the operation in nine-month rotations since 2014, according to the Maine Army National Guard. The operation features regular multinational training events that are meant to improve the working relationships between military allies in the region, including Poland, Bulgaria and Hungary.

[Bangor-based National Guard battalion tapped for deployment]

The battalion will be ceremonially sent off at 11 a.m. Saturday in Bangor High School’s Peakes Auditorium, with doors opening at 10 a.m. and the 195th Army Band playing at 10:30 a.m.

At least one member of Maine’s congressional delegation is expected to attend the event, according to a public affairs officer for the Maine National Guard.

“I am more than confident in the skills and professionalism of these soldiers,” Lt. Col. John Wilmot, commander of the 286th, said in a statement last month. “This is one of the best collections of soldiers I’ve seen in my 22-plus years in the Army.”

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