SAGAMI GENERAL DEPOT, Japan – Twenty noncommissioned officers participated in a rite of passage here Wednesday as they were officially inducted into the NCO corps.
Before any ceremonial procedure, the Soldiers, with their faces painted in camouflage, first had to complete a 6-mile road march in combat gear around the installation.
Afterward, they went inside the Mission Training Complex to take part in an NCO induction ceremony, the second of which the 35th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion has held this past year.
“Events like this build trust in organizations; it builds trust within the NCO cohort,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Paul J. Denson, the battalion’s senior enlisted leader. “I’m proud that we, as an organization, are able to do a second NCO induction ceremony.”
Staff Sgt. Renalyn Lawson, an operations NCO who supports Denson’s office, was tired but still smiling at the end of the road march.
“It was a little rough,” Lawson said. “I haven’t rucked for 6 miles in a while, but we did it as a team and we didn’t leave anybody behind.”
Sgt. Nathan Merrill, a transportation management coordinator, said the road march was challenging but good practice for the upcoming Expert Soldier Badge competition, in which he hopes to participate.
Merrill, who has served in the Army for five years, also appreciated being able to attend the induction ceremony.
In the ceremony, each inductee walked under a wooden arch adorned with all the NCO ranks, followed by a pair of raised sabers that symbolized the Soldiers’ rite of passage into the corps, which dates back to 1775 with the birth of the Continental Army. They then recited an oath and the NCO Creed, and sang the Army song.
“It’s always fun to take part in a ceremony that’s bigger than yourself,” Merrill said.
Lawson, who has been in the Army for eight years, said she also was honored to be inducted.
“This kind of reminds us of what our role is as an NCO,” she said. “We are the backbone of the Army.”
As for being an NCO, she said it really comes down to being there for her subordinates.
“For me, it’s taking care of your Soldiers, knowing your Soldiers, and taking care of their health and welfare,” she said.
The inductees represented 12 different military occupational specialties, ranged in rank from corporal to staff sergeant, and also have been serving in the Army from three to 11 years.
“That’s a diverse and impressive array of talent, skills and experience, and I want to congratulate you all on what you accomplished in your career so far,” said Command Sgt. Maj. David A. Rio, senior enlisted leader of U.S. Army Garrison Japan.
Rio, who was the ceremony’s guest speaker, said the transition from junior enlisted Soldier to NCO is one that should not be taken lightly.
“It’s greater responsibility for your own actions [and] those under your care, as well as an increased responsibility for the success of your organization,” Rio told the inductees.
Rio recalled that when he first became an NCO, he was suddenly given a Soldier of his own that he had to train and mold, as well as look after their welfare.
“I was assigned more challenging and demanding tasks and I had to ensure those were accomplished to standard,” he said. “And when they weren’t, it was me being held accountable. And it’s this responsibility to something bigger than oneself that I feel is the hallmark of an NCO.”
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