Troops with the Minnesota National Guard at Fort McCoy in Wisconsin are nearly done with training, and many will go to Kuwait next week.

Some soldiers are already seeing their buddies head to Kuwait for the Minnesota National Guard’s second-largest deployment since World War II. The mission, Operation New Dawn, is the final drawdown of weapons, equipment and soldiers from Iraq.

Sunday, at Fort McCoy, roughly 2,300 of the 2,400 deploying soldiers were treated to a giant cookout, hosted by their friends, families and volunteers.

“It went great,” said Maj. Paul Rickert, public affairs officer for the Minnesota National Guard. “There were some concerns that weather was going to be problem, but fortunately, we had sunshine for the entire event.”

Rickert said about 5,500 family members came to show their support for all the soldiers departing, of which Rickert is one himself. He added the group of soldiers represents 530 communities throughout Minnesota.

“I’m really looking forward to it,” Rickert said about the deployment. “I’m looking forward to being part of the drawdown.”

Rickert added he sees it as a part of history, as he was in Iraq for his first deployment. Now he will see two sides of the war — beginning and end.

Nearly 100 soldiers are already packing for Kuwait, as they will be the prep group before the rest of the battalion arrives.