thedrifter
07-28-07, 06:56 AM
Sea Cadet is running to help injured vets
By TERRY BROWN, Staff writer
.
First published: Saturday, July 28, 2007
17-year-old Naval Sea Cadet from East Greenbush is taking many steps to aid Marines and sailors injured in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan.
After Sea Cadet Leader Petty Officer Siegel completed his junior year this June at Columbia High School in East Greenbush, he launched a training program that prepares him to run in the Marine Corps Marathon slated for Oct. 18 in Arlington, Va.
The Sea Cadet, son of Harold and Susan Siegel of East Greenbush, is the second in cadet command of the Naval Cadets Mahan which drills once a month at the Naval Reserve Center on Washington Avenue in Albany.
The Naval Sea Cadets Corps is for youths, between the ages of 13 and 17 who have a desire to learn about the Navy, the Marines Corps and or the Merchant Marines, he said.
During a drill earlier his year, Siegel said, he learned Team Semper Fi sought runners to join the group in an effort to help raise money for an Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund by running in the 26.3-mile Marine road race.
Each runner is given his or her own Web donation page as a way to line up pledges. Siegel's site is www.active.com/ donate/teamsemperfi/ msiegel74
People also can donate by making checks payable and send to Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund, 825 College Blvd., Suite 102 PMB 609, Oceanside, CA 92057.
Siegel says he already has more than $550 of his $2,000 goal in pledges.
"All of the money will go to injured Marines and sailors to pay for costs associated with being seriously wounded in combat," he said. "Donations are used to help to defray expenses, including transportation, as the Marines, sailors and their families face recovery. It's very important that we help support those who fight for our freedom."
In preparation for the marathon, Mark is averaging running more than 10 miles daily. His training program requires him to increase the mileage each week up to a 35-mile run just before the marathon.
The Sea Cadet also is a volunteer firefighter with the East Greenbush Fire Department, a member of the Bruen Rescue Squad and a Rensselaer County Search and Rescue volunteer.
At Columbia High, he belongs to Future Leaders of America and Peer Leadership.
During his senior year at Columbia, he'll divide his school day between the East Greenbush school and a New Visions advance program with a focus on different engineering fields at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy.
After graduation from Columbia High in 2008, he said, he expects to major in engineering and be enrolled in Navy Reserve Officers Training Corps at Norwich University, Norwich, Vt. Upon graduation and completion of Marine Officer Candidate School, he'll be commissioned a second lieutenant.
He says his involvement in Sea Cadets will give him an edge in military courtesy, traditions and leadership.
More than 40 other youths and adults, including his father, Ensign Harold, are active in the Mahan Division in Albany.
Sea Cadet Lt. James Keller of Delmar commands the division.
Cadets are trained by both Sea Cadet officers and senior cadets on subjects such as seamanship, military drill, leadership, naval history, first aid, ship and aircraft familiarization, discipline, physical fitness, and shipboard safety.
Cadets tour Navy and Coast Guard ships and shore stations.
Fifteen cadets competed a three-day training cruise aboard the USS Wasp, a Marine amphibious ship, that transports a Marine expeditionary unit to troubles spots, from Norfolk, Va. "Each cadet shadowed an active duty crew member working in a job speciality of interest to each cadet," said Harold.
For information, visit the Mahan Web site at www.mahandivision.og or contact Keller at 729-5208.
Their next drill is from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Aug. 18 at the Naval reserve Center.
Air Force leader
Shawn Green of Valatie has been commissioned a second lieutenant and received a bachelor of science in management upon graduation from the Air Force Academy at Colorado Springs, Colo.
While at the academy, Green was a member of the Student Government, played on junior variety basketball team, served as a reconditioning instructor for athletically deficient cadets.
The Ichabod Crane High School graduate is the son of Leslie and Karen Green of Valatie. He will begin pilot training in August at Laughlin Air Force Base in Del Rio, Texas.
New Navy officer
Eric Christy of Niskayuna has been commissioned a Navy ensign upon completion of a ROTC program and graduation from Villanova University in Villanova, Pa. He received a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering.
The ensign, son of Tim and Leda Christy of Niskayuna, is undergoing Special Operations training in explosives ordinance demolition at Panama City, Fla.
Leads thousands
John Jack Ray of Albany is the new commander of the 3,100-member Albany County American Legion.
The Navy veteran is vice president and financial officer of the Bucci McTague Post of the American Legion in Albany. He served aboard the USS Ingraham DD-694. He also is a member of the Sheehy Palmer Post of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Albany, the Tin Can Sailors Association and the USS Ingraham Association.
Ray is a retired Albany Department of Engineering employee.
New Army soldiers
Army Pvt. Brian Nelson of Clifton Park, Pvt. Brenda Paul of Cohoes and Spc. Robert Vickery of Clifton Park have graduated from basic combat training at Fort Jackson, Columbia, S.C.
Nelson, son of Warren Nelson of Clifton Park, is a 2005 graduate of Shenendehowa High School, Clifton Park.
Paul is the granddaughter of Patricia Hamlin of Cohoes. She is a 2006 graduate of Cohoes High School.
Vickery is the son of Robert Vickery of Clifton Park. He graduated in 2001 from Shenendehowa High School in Clifton Park and received a bachelor's degree in 2005 from the University College at Oswego.
News of your soldiers and units can be sent to Duty Calls, Terry Brown, Times Union, Box 15000, Albany, NY 12212 or by e-mail at brownt@timesunion.com
Ellie
By TERRY BROWN, Staff writer
.
First published: Saturday, July 28, 2007
17-year-old Naval Sea Cadet from East Greenbush is taking many steps to aid Marines and sailors injured in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan.
After Sea Cadet Leader Petty Officer Siegel completed his junior year this June at Columbia High School in East Greenbush, he launched a training program that prepares him to run in the Marine Corps Marathon slated for Oct. 18 in Arlington, Va.
The Sea Cadet, son of Harold and Susan Siegel of East Greenbush, is the second in cadet command of the Naval Cadets Mahan which drills once a month at the Naval Reserve Center on Washington Avenue in Albany.
The Naval Sea Cadets Corps is for youths, between the ages of 13 and 17 who have a desire to learn about the Navy, the Marines Corps and or the Merchant Marines, he said.
During a drill earlier his year, Siegel said, he learned Team Semper Fi sought runners to join the group in an effort to help raise money for an Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund by running in the 26.3-mile Marine road race.
Each runner is given his or her own Web donation page as a way to line up pledges. Siegel's site is www.active.com/ donate/teamsemperfi/ msiegel74
People also can donate by making checks payable and send to Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund, 825 College Blvd., Suite 102 PMB 609, Oceanside, CA 92057.
Siegel says he already has more than $550 of his $2,000 goal in pledges.
"All of the money will go to injured Marines and sailors to pay for costs associated with being seriously wounded in combat," he said. "Donations are used to help to defray expenses, including transportation, as the Marines, sailors and their families face recovery. It's very important that we help support those who fight for our freedom."
In preparation for the marathon, Mark is averaging running more than 10 miles daily. His training program requires him to increase the mileage each week up to a 35-mile run just before the marathon.
The Sea Cadet also is a volunteer firefighter with the East Greenbush Fire Department, a member of the Bruen Rescue Squad and a Rensselaer County Search and Rescue volunteer.
At Columbia High, he belongs to Future Leaders of America and Peer Leadership.
During his senior year at Columbia, he'll divide his school day between the East Greenbush school and a New Visions advance program with a focus on different engineering fields at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy.
After graduation from Columbia High in 2008, he said, he expects to major in engineering and be enrolled in Navy Reserve Officers Training Corps at Norwich University, Norwich, Vt. Upon graduation and completion of Marine Officer Candidate School, he'll be commissioned a second lieutenant.
He says his involvement in Sea Cadets will give him an edge in military courtesy, traditions and leadership.
More than 40 other youths and adults, including his father, Ensign Harold, are active in the Mahan Division in Albany.
Sea Cadet Lt. James Keller of Delmar commands the division.
Cadets are trained by both Sea Cadet officers and senior cadets on subjects such as seamanship, military drill, leadership, naval history, first aid, ship and aircraft familiarization, discipline, physical fitness, and shipboard safety.
Cadets tour Navy and Coast Guard ships and shore stations.
Fifteen cadets competed a three-day training cruise aboard the USS Wasp, a Marine amphibious ship, that transports a Marine expeditionary unit to troubles spots, from Norfolk, Va. "Each cadet shadowed an active duty crew member working in a job speciality of interest to each cadet," said Harold.
For information, visit the Mahan Web site at www.mahandivision.og or contact Keller at 729-5208.
Their next drill is from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Aug. 18 at the Naval reserve Center.
Air Force leader
Shawn Green of Valatie has been commissioned a second lieutenant and received a bachelor of science in management upon graduation from the Air Force Academy at Colorado Springs, Colo.
While at the academy, Green was a member of the Student Government, played on junior variety basketball team, served as a reconditioning instructor for athletically deficient cadets.
The Ichabod Crane High School graduate is the son of Leslie and Karen Green of Valatie. He will begin pilot training in August at Laughlin Air Force Base in Del Rio, Texas.
New Navy officer
Eric Christy of Niskayuna has been commissioned a Navy ensign upon completion of a ROTC program and graduation from Villanova University in Villanova, Pa. He received a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering.
The ensign, son of Tim and Leda Christy of Niskayuna, is undergoing Special Operations training in explosives ordinance demolition at Panama City, Fla.
Leads thousands
John Jack Ray of Albany is the new commander of the 3,100-member Albany County American Legion.
The Navy veteran is vice president and financial officer of the Bucci McTague Post of the American Legion in Albany. He served aboard the USS Ingraham DD-694. He also is a member of the Sheehy Palmer Post of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Albany, the Tin Can Sailors Association and the USS Ingraham Association.
Ray is a retired Albany Department of Engineering employee.
New Army soldiers
Army Pvt. Brian Nelson of Clifton Park, Pvt. Brenda Paul of Cohoes and Spc. Robert Vickery of Clifton Park have graduated from basic combat training at Fort Jackson, Columbia, S.C.
Nelson, son of Warren Nelson of Clifton Park, is a 2005 graduate of Shenendehowa High School, Clifton Park.
Paul is the granddaughter of Patricia Hamlin of Cohoes. She is a 2006 graduate of Cohoes High School.
Vickery is the son of Robert Vickery of Clifton Park. He graduated in 2001 from Shenendehowa High School in Clifton Park and received a bachelor's degree in 2005 from the University College at Oswego.
News of your soldiers and units can be sent to Duty Calls, Terry Brown, Times Union, Box 15000, Albany, NY 12212 or by e-mail at brownt@timesunion.com
Ellie