Oshkosh-based 1157th coming home

OSHKOSH - The 1157th Transportation Company based out of Oshkosh is coming back home.

The unit deployed last February for training for missions in Afghanistan.

• Photos: 1157th returns from Afghanistan
• Photos: The 1157th in Afghanistan

The more than 100 members returned to U.S. soil Monday night. The unit is currently undergoing demobilization at Camp Shelby in Mississippi.

A Wisconsin National Guard spokesperson says that typically takes 8-10 days.

But for one mother of a deployed soldier, she says she can't wait for her daughter to come home.

"It’s taken so much stress off my daily living," said Carolyn Kufahl in a phone interview with FOX 11 from her Watertown, Wis. home.  

She says to say she’s proud of her daughter – Specialist Tiffany Baker – doesn't come close to how she feels about what Baker and the rest of her unit has done for the country.

"Over the last year, I kept thinking to myself, what else did I mean by proud? I thought about the sacrifices and commitments she made and not just her, but the 1157th, altogether."

Though it's been a little less than one year since Tiffany left, it hasn't been the easiest for Kufahl.

"On her first mission out, Memorial Day, May 26th, her truck with three other soldiers in it was hit by an IED,” said Kufahl. The blast, she says, flipped Baker’s truck. The incident earned Baker and three others the Purple Heart.

"She turned out fine, but I think I was more scared than she ended up being,” said Kufahl. "I just can't wait for her to be home and spend every minute that I can with her - if she wants me to."

Kufahl says she doesn't have big plans for her daughter’s return – other than celebrating a late Christmas dinner with her daughter and the rest of the family.

The Army is planning a welcome home ceremony on the EAA grounds when the unit returns to Wisconsin.

The soldiers conducted convoy escort missions while in Afghanistan.