Blue Earth native, Army Spec.-Medic Matt Bakken has been deployed to war in Afghanistan.

Bakken was among the 3,500 1st I-40 Bravo Troop CAV, 4th Brigade Airborne combat team, 25th infantry soldiers deployed from Fort Richardson, Alaska, in ceremonies conducted by Gov. Sarah Palin.

Bakken, 22, is a 2005 graduate of Blue Earth Area High School and spent a tour of war in Iraq in 2007.