About 25 Minnesota finance soldiers are headed to the Middle East as part of the U.S. effort to root out terror groups in Iraq, Syria and Libya.

This will be the first deployment for more than half of the 247^th Financial Management Support Detachment soldiers.

Hundreds of supporters showed up at Donaldson Company in Bloomington to send off their loved ones.

The group’s commander says their mission is to support the service member’s pay and maintain accountability of U.S. funds. The group will ensure financial readiness for the U.S. Armed Forces and civilian contractors.

“It’s super critical. Pay support is extremely important in the military. We like to say if soldiers aren’t getting paid, they probably don’t want to do their job. Right. So it’s a big part of morale, but it’s also just an important aspect of any business,” said Cmdr. Emily Goetz. 

The unit’s deployment is part of a regularly scheduled rotation of units and will last 10 months.