CLEARWATER, Fla. — It was a homecoming Thursday for members of the Florida National Guard who spent the last 10 months training Ukrainian armed forces in Europe.

Members of the 53rd Infantry Brigade arrived in Clearwater shortly before 1 p.m., where they were greeted by fellow National Guard soldiers.

The unit deployed last November to train Ukrainian armed forces until just before the Russian invasion. The troops were then sent to Germany, and then several other countries, where they continued to train Ukrainians and other allied forces.

Col. Jerry Blake Glass served as commander of the training mission, named Task Force Gator. Glass said while his soldiers are proud of all they accomplished, they were also eager to get home.

“We had a mission, so we stayed busy," Glass said. "But as time gets closer and closer to getting home …we all have loved ones. So I think we’re all excited just to hug them and be back on Florida ground."

Glass and the others were reunited with their families after a ceremony in their honor, during which Glass congratulated the soldiers for a job well done.

“These soldiers in formation today have left a lasting legacy on the security of Europe,” he said. “And probably the world for the next 40 years.”