National Guard battalion marks 35 years with new light ceremony

Latvia’s 52nd Combat Support Battalion of the National Guard marked its 35th anniversary in Jelgava with a new tradition called the “Guard Light Path,” LSM reported, citing Zemgale Regional Television. The symbolic light connects the battalion’s past, present and future, from its establishment in 1991 to today and to future generations of National Guard members.

During the first ceremony, a National Guard member who has served in the battalion since its beginnings passed the light to its next bearer. Four new members also took an oath to protect Latvia.

The first bearer was Lieutenant Jānis Kinēns, who has served in the National Guard since its founding. Born in 1959 in Karaganda in a prisoner-of-war camp, he is the son of a legionnaire. Kinēns, who also chairs the Veterans’ Association, said he joined the National Guard in 1991 after taking part in the barricades.

Over 35 years, the battalion’s equipment and the daily lives of its members have changed. Egils Hipšmanis, who has served in the battalion since 1992, experienced those changes and became the new bearer of the Guard Light at the anniversary ceremony. He has worked in communications throughout his service, focusing on equipment, technology and related tasks.

Alongside long-serving members, the battalion continues to attract new recruits. One of the four people who took the oath, Janeks Dreija, said he chose the 52nd Battalion because he is from Jelgava and military service had passed him by when he was younger and studying. He said he joined the National Guard to gain military knowledge.