We saw welcome signs, flags in one back yard, and people waving from an overpass as we drove along I-57 today, so this story confirms what we suspected. Illinois soldiers return home from Afghanistan — chicagotribune.com KANKAKEE, Ill. – About 135 Illinois Army National Guard soldiers have returned home after a 9-month deployment to Afghanistan. The soldiers from the 178th Infantry were greeted Sunday by their families, friends and supporters at a welcome home ceremony in Kankakee. The soldiers were on three buses and followed a parade route from Manteno, through Bradley and then to a Kankakee community center. They…