With Veterans Day on the horizon, the thought of the military is on many people’s minds. I couldn’t help but be interested in how the military is prevalent in current Argonaut’s lives today. I always see recruiters hanging around in the common areas and hallways, and Semper Fi Saturday has just passed, so I caught up with two Semper Fi Saturday participants to get a better understanding of what drives them.

Daniel Tapia is a future marine. He heard about a recruiter, Sergeant Bermudas, from a friend and sought out the Sergeant to get more information about the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery. The ASVAB is multiple choice test used by the Armed Forces to determine qualifications for potential enlistees. He knew this was something he wanted to be a part of, and he even remembers the date he took the ASVAB. When the results came out, he enlisted as soon as possible, making him a poolee. His ship out date is July 30th, 2018. He says he has been interested in joining since he was a child, but his main drive to join the military is to be a good role model for his younger sister.

Lauren Gardner has a slightly different story. She is going to be part of the marines as soon as she turns 18. She trains at RSS Oak Lawn with the poolees in their delayed entry program, but she cannot sign up until she is 18 because her parents don’t agree with her joining. She is in the application process for the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps, where she would attend college while training to become an officer. Between her junior and senior year of college, she would go to Officer Candidate School to become an officer in the Marine Corps, and after her senior year of college, she would be stationed out in the fleet. She said something very profound about her wanting to join the military, stating “When I found my drive to be a part of something bigger than myself, serve my country, and maintain high levels of physical and mental fitness, I knew that the military was my passion”.

While these students have different stories, different paths, and different lives, they have the same drive to be a part of those who serve our country. We wish them luck in their endeavors and are proud of them, as fellow Argonauts, for moving on to something big. They will be part of “The Few, The Proud” and our hearts will stay with them as they enter new challenges and adventures. Oorah!