A Hermosa man, recently back from deployment to Iraq as a senior adviser, will take over the South Dakota Army National Guard's modular training battalion in July.

Lt. Col. Harvey Fitzgerald will take command of 2nd Battalion, 196th Regiment during a change of command ceremony at 4 p.m. Saturday, July 12, at the Fort Meade memorial gazebo. After the ceremony, Fitzgerald also will be honored for his recent service in Iraq. The public is encouraged to attend the program.

Fitzgerald voluntarily served 10 months as an agri-business specialist helping the Iraqi provincial government to formulate its agricultural policy, including help for private agriculture.

He is a member of the South Dakota National Guard's Joint Force Headquarters. He was assigned to the 1st Cavalry Division stationed at Camp Taji near Baghdad.

The mission of the modular training battalion is to provide command and control for modular training companies. Among its several tasks, the battalion prepares training teams for deployment.