Even though her tour of duty ended in March, Captain Emilia Fernandez put on her uniform Saturday morning and drove to Bartonville from her home in Chicago.

"Its nice to be recognized for the sacrifices that we've made, but also the sacrifices made by our families," said Fernandez. "They obviously are alone for a year. But it does mean a great deal to us."

Captain Fernandez is one of about 100 members of the Illinois Army National Guard 106th Aviation Company who were recognized for their service in a ceremony at Limestone High School.

What they experienced while helping to secure an unstable region will stay with them for the rest of their lives.

"We actually got to see their first anniversary of their independence," said Captain Jason Cobb of Mattoon. "It was their first Independence Day celebration. That was wonderful. Great to see."

Many of the soldiers contributed to some of the more than 400 air missions flown by the 106th to perform medical evacuations and reconnaissance. E5 Sgt. Len Ashford says their mission was a success.

"We flew crowd control troops around. We supported Santa Claus. We even supported some of the Muslim religions and some of their operations locally. We supported that society in helping maintain the U–N charter mission, which is to keep peace," said Ashford.

Fernandez said she will always remember the children who she came in contact with in Kosovo.

"Sometimes we would go to the schools and help them," said Fernandez. "The kids were very appreciative. We would go there and have mentoring. We would teach the students some English and they were very grateful."

The soldiers received medals of achievement and Defender of Freedom certificates. More importantly, they received the thanks of the people they fought to protect.