The 132nd Support Battalion Distinctive Unit Insignia, also called a unit crest, was approved on 10 July 1969. A scroll that serves as the base for the insignia reads “Supply Service Support,” the unit motto and a succinct summation of the organization’s core functions. Scarlet is employed throughout the insignia to denote the unit as belonging to the Support Branch. Just above “Service” is a yellow (gold) pile, which in heraldry is always a sign of strength and support.
The red silhouetted between the two downward-pointing piles simulates a red arrowhead and is an allusion to the 32nd Infantry Brigade to which it was assigned when it was organized. Additionally, the lower pile (upward-pointing) simulates a mountain with the disk resembling a hole in it; this is an allusion to the term “Badger” applied to early lead miners in Wisconsin, the unit’s home state (“Badger State”). They would dig into the side of a hill and live under ground while searching for the raw material, much as a badger digs and lives in a burrow.
Distinctive Unit Insignias is worn by all Soldiers (except General Officers) in units that have been authorized to be issued the device. It is worn centered on the shoulder loops of the Army Green Service Uniform (AGSU) and the blue Army Service Uniform (ASU, Enlisted only) with the base of the insignia toward the outside shoulder seam. DUIs are not worn on the Dress variations of either uniform, however.
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Today known as the 132nd Brigade Support Battalion, the 132nd Support Battalion was constituted under that name on 20 November 1967 and assigned to the 32nd Infantry Brigade, then organized with existing units a little over a month later on 30 December 1967. It would not be called into Federal service until 1 February 2009 and was released from it on 7 March 2010, leaving campaign participation credits for the War on Terrorism for the battalion as a whole yet to be determined. However, the Battalion’s HQ and A, B, C, and E Companies are individually credited with numerous campaigns from the War With Spain and both World Wars, as well as an impressive list of military decorations; you can view them by
clicking here.
As of Summer 2023, the 132nd Brigade Support Battalion is still assigned to the 32nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team and is headquartered at Portage, Wisconsin.