Soldiers returning from Afghanistan arrived in Rhinelander Saturday afternoon, many later making their way back with family and friends to the Chippewa Valley.

About 100 soldiers from the Wisconsin National Guard's 951st "Sapper" Engineer Company were welcomed back to a roaring crowd.

And some family members couldn't be happier to be back in their soldiers arms. Sidney Peterson is a returning soldiers daughter, she says, "Because when he hugs really hard he shakes and he was shaking a lot so it was really, really awesome."

The unit left Wisconsin last November and landed in Afghanistan this past February.

Their tasks in Afghanistan included searching for improvised explosives, scouting and gathering identifying data from local residents.