thedrifter
01-22-09, 03:49 PM
JROTC gets low-down on boot camp
KATHY STEVENS The York Dispatch
Updated: 01/22/2009 11:51:57 AM EST
They told him what to expect from boot camp.
Crawl through swamps. Carry a 60-pound pack miles each day. And never mind the biting sand gnats that swarm swamps throughout the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in Parris Island, S.C.
The best part? Graduation.
That was the low-down on boot camp for William Penn Senior High School student Robert Ellis, also a JROTC cadet first lieutenant. It was provided by two Marines serving in Iraq during a video conference Wednesday.
The Marines, joined by two seamen, spoke to Robert and the rest of Eric Shipe's social studies class through the Freedom Call Foundation.
The foundation exists to provide such conferences to troops serving in the Middle East. Robert, 17, of York City, and fellow students posed questions to service members, avoiding topics the military forbids such as opinions about war and the new commander in chief, for example.
Think first: Still, Robert said he learned enough from the brief conversation and was grateful to hear the men's advice. Suggestions included a soul-searching effort prior to enlisting in any branch of the service. That, the men said, is necessary because many young enlistees don't consider the bottom line of military service: Are you willing to die for your country?
In times of war, that question is obvious. But during peacetime, recruits too often are eager to collect perks such as college, job training, a steady paycheck and the chance to travel the world.
Life in Iraq:
Other students -- civilians thus far -- asked what the servicemen did for fun, the most difficult aspect of their task and about their
perception of Iraq and its people.
Their answers varied little. They miss their families, whether children, wives or parents. The hardest part of the job is leaving home and returning -- leaving because of goodbyes, the return because life at home changes while their lives away seem stagnant in the wait to return home.
As for Iraq and its people, the servicemen described summers as unbearably hot with temperatures soaring to 130 degrees. The people are, for the most part, friendly and beginning to rebuild lives. The Iraqi children, the men said, are like kids anywhere -- happy to play and laugh and look up to heroes.
Student Idraina Ranson, 14, of York City, asked the servicemen if they believed they were heroes, to which all replied, "No."
Instead, they told her they're just doing their jobs, something they signed up to do and do with pride. But Idraina said later that she believes they are.
"Personally, I wouldn't do it," she said. "They are heroes to me, probably to everyone, even though they don't think they are."
-- Reach Kathy Stevens at 505-5437 or kstevens@yorkdispatch.com.
Ellie
KATHY STEVENS The York Dispatch
Updated: 01/22/2009 11:51:57 AM EST
They told him what to expect from boot camp.
Crawl through swamps. Carry a 60-pound pack miles each day. And never mind the biting sand gnats that swarm swamps throughout the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in Parris Island, S.C.
The best part? Graduation.
That was the low-down on boot camp for William Penn Senior High School student Robert Ellis, also a JROTC cadet first lieutenant. It was provided by two Marines serving in Iraq during a video conference Wednesday.
The Marines, joined by two seamen, spoke to Robert and the rest of Eric Shipe's social studies class through the Freedom Call Foundation.
The foundation exists to provide such conferences to troops serving in the Middle East. Robert, 17, of York City, and fellow students posed questions to service members, avoiding topics the military forbids such as opinions about war and the new commander in chief, for example.
Think first: Still, Robert said he learned enough from the brief conversation and was grateful to hear the men's advice. Suggestions included a soul-searching effort prior to enlisting in any branch of the service. That, the men said, is necessary because many young enlistees don't consider the bottom line of military service: Are you willing to die for your country?
In times of war, that question is obvious. But during peacetime, recruits too often are eager to collect perks such as college, job training, a steady paycheck and the chance to travel the world.
Life in Iraq:
Other students -- civilians thus far -- asked what the servicemen did for fun, the most difficult aspect of their task and about their
perception of Iraq and its people.
Their answers varied little. They miss their families, whether children, wives or parents. The hardest part of the job is leaving home and returning -- leaving because of goodbyes, the return because life at home changes while their lives away seem stagnant in the wait to return home.
As for Iraq and its people, the servicemen described summers as unbearably hot with temperatures soaring to 130 degrees. The people are, for the most part, friendly and beginning to rebuild lives. The Iraqi children, the men said, are like kids anywhere -- happy to play and laugh and look up to heroes.
Student Idraina Ranson, 14, of York City, asked the servicemen if they believed they were heroes, to which all replied, "No."
Instead, they told her they're just doing their jobs, something they signed up to do and do with pride. But Idraina said later that she believes they are.
"Personally, I wouldn't do it," she said. "They are heroes to me, probably to everyone, even though they don't think they are."
-- Reach Kathy Stevens at 505-5437 or kstevens@yorkdispatch.com.
Ellie