February 17, 2023
Pocatello–When Chief Warrant Officer 2 Jake Stevens arrived at the Pocatello airport this morning for his flight to join his unit in Washington state, he was met by nearly thirty members of the community who had come to wish him well.
The early morning send-off was arranged by Marcie Cates, who got to know Jake during his political campaign last year. She felt that his deployment should not pass unnoticed, so she organized a group a friends to surprise him at the airport.
Stevens is a member of the 382nd Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state. His unit will deploy to the Middle East, where he will focus on establishing and maintaining communication networks for maneuver elements throughout the region.
Before Stevens boarded his plane, Pastor Don Whitecar of Mountain Valley Baptist Church led the group in a prayer for his safety while deployed.
