‘Semper fidelis’
Ten from Class of
2001
answered call before Sept. 11
By DANA
DUGAN
Express Staff Writer
One of
the aftermaths of the terrorist attacks Sept. 11, 2001, on the East
Coast is the upswing in successful military recruitment.
But here
in the Wood River Valley something remarkable occurred even before the
attacks incited a call to arms. Ten graduates of the Wood River High
School Class of 2001 joined the U.S. Marines. Lee Dumke, Javier Terrazas,
Martin Moya, Carlos Simental, Alfredo Ojeda, Josh Alstrom, Nicholas
Stavros, Zac Broadie, Jake Pritchard and Jason Williams are currently on
active duty with the Corps.
The
Blaine County recruits first spent 13 weeks in boot camp at Camp
Pendleton in San Diego. This process involves training in first aid,
water survival skills, marksmanship, tactics and other related topics.
Training also focuses on customs, traditions and the history of the U.S.
Marines.
And as
Veterans Day approaches, members of the recruits’ families are pausing
to reflect on military service in today’s world.
Sherrie
Broadie, Zac’s mother, said his enlistment was partially a career
move. "Some of it was looking at the future, there are a lot of
benefits," she said.
Broadie,
who played football and wrestled while at Wood River High School, went
to college for one semester. "Lewis & Clark wasn’t his thing,
it wasn’t even a month later that he joined up," his mother said.
But the change has not been difficult. "He is a very disciplined
person anyway."
Now in
Missouri, Broadie earned his Logistic Vehicle Systems qualification last
Friday.
"Sometimes
he second-guesses his decision, but I tell you what, this kid has got
some training," his mother said.
Nicholas
Stavros’ mother, Linda, said her son had been planning to join the
Marines ever since he was a freshman. After graduation from WRHS he
enlisted in July 2001 "He admired the Marines and what they do. He’s
quite smitten with them, and is a very proud Marine," she said.
Now a
lance corporal, his Military Occupation Specialty is machine gunner.
Currently stationed at Camp Lejeune, N.C., Stavros is going to Okinawa
in June on Pacific Float duty, and will be doing desert survival
training later at Twentynine Palms, Calif. This past year he trained in
Spain with the Spanish Army, and went to Bridgeport, Calif., for
mountain training.
"It
opens doors for these young men," Linda Stavros said. She said when
he came home in uniform for leave earlier this year, people approached
him at the airport and thanked him for protecting his country. "I
cried. I’m a very proud mother."
She added
that her son hopes to go into military intelligence, eventually.
Higinio
Simental said his son Carlos, who is in the infantry, is already in
Twentynine Palms for desert training. "He’s okay. I like it but
sometimes it’s hard." Carlos, who has one brother, was born in
Wyoming. He spent most of his school years in the Blaine County School
system.
Two of
the young men, Jake Pritchard and Alfredo Ojeda, are cooks. Lee Dumke,
who is stationed at Camp David, Md., is part of the Presidential Guard.
Josh Alstrom is in the infantry at Camp Lejeune. Javier Terrazas and
Jason Willingham are in Motor Transportation at Camp Pendleton.
So why
did these 10 young men join up last year?
"A
lot of enlistees just want to go out and set themselves up to be more
successful in life." said their recruiter, Staff Sgt. H. J. Rimkus,
based in Twin Falls.
They are
attracted by the appeals for pride, leadership and discipline, Rimkus
said. A person would have to be "a bump on a log" not to take
advantage of what the military offers, he added.
Rimkus
said there was a flurry of inquiries following the Sept. 11 terrorist
attacks, but many of those were from people who were not eligible. An
enlistee must be between 17 and 29 years of age, a high school graduate,
and medically and legally sound.
The
Marines are always on call for service. Deployed by Navy ships, they are
often the first to arrive in a crisis. In addition, the Marine Corps is
the only branch of the armed services specifically organized with air,
land, and sea-based expeditionary fighting capabilities.
"I
am damn proud," Sherrie Broadie said. "I’m damn proud of all
these guys."