FORT SILL, Okla., June 16, 2016 -- High schoolers wearing camouflage uniforms got a taste of Army life at the Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps (JROTC) Leadership Camp at Fort Sill, June 6-10.
Hosted by 1st Battalion, 19th Field Artillery, the camp gave the youths a peek into what basic combat training is like, without the rifles and drill sergeants.
Freshmen, sophomore and junior JROTC cadets from 18 Oklahoma schools and one from Lubbock, Texas, lived in the Building 1602 barracks and ate at Bamford Dining Facility. All three Lawton JROTC high schools were represented: Lawton, MacArthur and Eisenhower.
The premiere challenge June 9 was the rappel at Treadwell Tower's 40-foot wall.
"I'm very scared. I might die," joked Akiera Knuckles, a MacArthur junior. "But I'm OK."
Shane Lord, Lawton High sophomore, said, "I'm nervous, but I'm very determined to get down to the bottom in two jumps."
This was his second time as a JROTC cadet facing Treadwell Tower. He said the most challenging activity of the previous days was the land navigation course at Potato Hill which required finding four or five map points.
Kunckles agreed, "The grass was pretty tall. We saw a snake," she said.
The most fun for them was the obstacle course, part of the combat conditioning activity which featured low crawls under barbed wire, rope courses simulating a water crossing, running and jumping. Their last activity was to be the "drown-proofing" course at the Patriot Club pool that afternoon, which would teach them how to avoid drowning if they were unable to swim.
Lord's father and grandfather served in the Army and Air Force, and Knuckles' Army veteran grandfather Lewis Sigler and her two brothers were on hand to record her conquering Treadwell Tower. Sigler said he hopes his granddaughter does a stint in the military after ROTC in college.
"Most civilians don't understand they are free doing whatever they want to because of these uniforms," said Sigler.
The 240 cadets were divided into Alpha and Bravo teams, which squared off the final day during the drill ceremony competition. Led by student commanders, the six drill teams followed a prescribed order of movements and were graded by a JROTC staff member and two Fort Sill drill sergeants. The teams were comprised of members of different schools, and as they awaited the beginning of the competition their instructors gave them tips.
"Keep your hats on straight, parallel to the ground," was one bit of advice. "Remember, if you screw up, just keep on going. Don't draw attention."
One of the cadets warned her teammates, "Do not look at anyone else. Look dead ahead."
Drill Sgt. (Staff Sgt.) Kendrick Hardy, A Battery, 1-19th FA, and Drill Sgt. (Sgt. 1st Class) Joseph Moyer, C Battery, 1-19th FA, frequently compared notes and scribbled scores. However, there was no doubt as to which team was the best in their opinion. Alpha Team's 2nd platoon, led by Darius Arney of Daniel Webster High in Tulsa, came out on top.
1st Lt. Oswaldo Restrepo, 1-19th officer in charge for the JROTC event, said of the cadets, "They're excited. They're motivated. It gives them a taste of what it's like to be in the Army. Maybe we'll be seeing these Soldiers coming through our basic training in the next few years."
Col. James Taylor, JROTC instructor at Eisenhower High School, said, "Some of these kids will never join the Army. They're either physically not prepared, and some are special education cadets, so this is the closest they will ever get to the Army."
This is the third year the camp has been at Fort Sill. Previously it was at Camp Gruber, an Oklahoma National Guard facility near Braggs.
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