When Minnesota National Guard soldiers of D Company, 2nd Battalion, 135 Infantry Regiment arrive home in Albert Lea Thursday, members of the Minnesota Patriot Guard and other local leaders are hoping the public will be out in full force to welcome them home.

Ken Delano, ride captain of the Albert Lea sector of the Minnesota Patriot Guard, said the public is asked to be ready for the troops between 6:30 and 7:30 p.m.

The Patriot Guard and various law enforcement agencies plan to stage at the ShopKo parking lot.

The soldiers will be leaving Fort McCoy in Wisconsin at about 4:30 p.m., driving westbound on Interstate 90 and getting off at the Bridge Avenue exit to make a procession into town.

From Bridge Avenue, the procession will turn onto Fountain Street, then onto Broadway Avenue, then to Main Street until they arrive at the local National Guard Armory for a special ceremony. The ceremony planned at the armory is limited to close family of the soldiers.

There, Albert Lea Mayor Randy Erdman will speak and special awards will be given out.

Delano said he hopes people will line the roads alongside the procession, especially the downtown area, with welcome home signs, flags and words of thanks. He is hoping businesses along the route will also post “welcome home” on their signs.

The procession will occur rain or shine.

“It doesn’t matter what the weather is doing, we’re going to be there for them,” Delano said.

The Albert Lea unit had a farewell ceremony on July 16 last year. The soldiers left July 18 from the Rochester airport for Atterbury, Ind.

They spent two months of training there, then flew to Germany for another month of training before going to Kosovo, which was then considered an autonomous region of Serbia.

They became part of the 400 soldiers of the Minnesota National Guard who served as NATO and U.N. peacekeepers for nine months. In February, Kosovo declared independence from Serbia without bloodshed, though not all countries recognize an independent Kosovo.