Capitol Building
The St Amant Gator Cadet Corps embarked on their first long distance field
trip. The trip planning was the responsibility of senior cadets Lauren
Henry and Susan Bedgood. Prior planning called for a jam packed 5 days.
The cadets, Captain Dennis Beaver and French teacher Yannick Brignac
departed New Orleans at 1045, 8 March. A quick stop for a change of
planes in the city of :Brotherly Love", Philadelphia, preceded their uneventfull arrival at Reagan National Airport. The group was met by
Captain James Kelley, the Senior Naval Science Instructor for Douglas High
School's NJROTC program. Captain Kelley provided valuable assistance in
coordinating visits to the Naval Academy, Naval Station, Annapolis and a tour
of the Capital building. The Gator cadet corps owes a debt of gratitude to
Captain Kelley for his efforts on our behalf.
Thoughts of the Cadets about their field trip
"Washington DC expresses the honor of
serving your country. I dare not take the pledge of allegiance so
lightly when it carries the blood of so many"
Andre' Gele', senior, Cadet Commanding Officer
"Just being at Gettysburg and seeing
where the battles took place made me feel like I was apart of the battle
.... I could picture the fighting all over again"
Chance Motichek, senior ,Cadet Administrative Officer
"As we arrived on our flight just
seeing the capitol and monuments from the air made my heart beat faster"
Jonathan Crozier, senior, Cadet Operations Officer
Thoughts of the Cadets about their field trip
"The
visit to Arlington Cemetery was immediately moving. I was overwhelmed
by the number of graves and the expanse of the cemetery. Each
tombstone made me think about the serviceman who was buried there and what
they might have been thinking when they met their unfortunate death"
Susan Bedgood, senior, Cadet Chaplin
"The tombs of Arlington call aloud
and pierce my soul, they tell me to carry their flag and protect their
freedoms lest they die in vain, lest I serve in vain"
Andre' Gele', senior, Cadet
Commanding Officer
"When we got to the Vietnam Wall and
I saw all the men and women who died for our freedom, and left there
families to fight for us, I wanted to just get on my knees and thank God for
them and their Duty to country"
Jonathan Crozier, senior, Cadet Operations Officer
Gettysburg and Arlington Cemetary
"Many people ... don't have an appreciation of the soldiers that struggled
and fought for the freedom of others"
Susan Bedgood, senior, Cadet Chaplain
|
|
|||
After arriving in DC, we checked in at the President Inn and immediately
headed to the monuments. First on our voyage was the
Thomas Jefferson Memorial. We
moved on and made it to the Korean War
Memorial, Abraham Lincoln Memorial,
Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial, and the
Vietnam War Memorial. We moved
throughout the Mall making our way to the
Washington Monument and a distant
look at the White House.
Our first morning in Washington DC (9 Mar) saw a 0600 wakeup for the trip to
Annapolis Maryland and Naval Station, Annapolis. The Naval Station is
directly across the Severn River from the United States
Naval Academy. The Naval
Station, has as one of its missions to train future Naval Officer from the
Academy. As would be expected these future officers need to learn the
basic and intermediate steps to being the Captain of their own boat or ship.
The Naval Station, through the office of YP Boat Operations, maintains 24 YP
(yard patrol) boats to teach midshipmen ship navigation and seamanship. YP Operations hosted our morning at the Naval Station, explaining their
mission, showing the cadets how sails are made, and allowing us aboard one of
their YP boats for a trip up
and down the Severn River
Our next visit was to the Naval Station Galley for lunch. Following
lunch we drove across the Severn River Bridge to the
Naval Academy for a tour of
the Academy. Our first stop was at the tomb of John Paul Jones.
John Paul Jones was a Scottish citizen who became famous in the Continental
Navy and help defeats the British in the Revolutionary War. He is most
remembered for his famous response to a British Ships Captain who suggests
that he surrender. john Paul Jones's response was: "We have not yet
begun to fight". Our visit included stops at the chapel and the Academy gift
store.
This jam packed day was not complete without a visit to
the National Air and Space
Museum. We only had time for a short visit, since it closed at
5:30, but, everyone made the best of our time there. The trip was
schedule to include a visit to the Naval Observatory, however, the head
Astronomer who was to give us a tour was called out of town. So, we
skipped the Observatory and headed to Henderson Barracks, the Marine Corps
Station at the top of Arlington Cemetery for dinner at Subway and a quick
trip through the Marine Corps Exchange.
|
||||
Friday morning, 10 Mar, we where up bright and early to catch the metro (subway) to Arlington Cemetery. We spent two hours traveling through the cemetery past the monuments and headstones for fallen comrades and the always inspirational Iwo Jima Memorial. The group stayed long enough to witness the "Changing of the Guard" at the unknown soldiers monument. Visitors to this site can see a Photo Gallery of our visit to Arlington Cemetery through this link. Once again we boarded the Metro and headed back into town and the museums. We made it to the National Museum of Natural History and the National Museum of American History that morning. For the afternoon we where provided a tour of the Library of Congress by a former marine and docent for the Library of Congress. The cadets where provided a brief history of the building and the missions of the Library, to include the warehousing of the written word and the office of patents for all patents developed in the United States. Following our Library of Congress visit we moved on to the Longworth building which is the home of State Representatives to the Congress. Captain Kelley, on our behalf, made arrangements for the Office of California Representative Gary Miller (R) to provide a tour of the Capitol building and insight into the operations of Congress. Pictures of the Capitol followed while we awaited the evening meal. Always on a budget, we planned one sit down restaurant diner. We chose the Old Ebbit Grill. Food was good, the company was great, and everyone enjoyed the experience.
Changing of the Guard at the tomb of the Unknown soldier. Tis the least we can do in exchange for the ultimate sacrifice, to die for the country and the citizens you love
To dream of what could be. Can a high school senior make a difference?
|
||||
The naval science course of study in high school NJROTC includes military conflicts through history and how the individual nations Navy impacted events, winning and losing. The Battle of Gettysburg, a battle from our Civil War, lacked any naval influence. However, what it represents is a conflict between brothers, sons, fathers, friends and neighbors that occurred early in our nations development. Regardless if the war brought the states closer together as a nation or further divided it, what is important is that all Americans should recognized the catastrophic impact such a war can have on its' citizens. Each of the cadets was afforded a better perspective of what occurred, the magnitude of the battles and the lives that were lost on those three days. They witnessed first hand the challenge of Picketts Charge and the fruitless efforts of the south in Devils Den. We spent the better part of the day, Saturday, 11 Mar, traveling and touring the Gettysburg National Park Emotions were high as the cadets could almost feel the casualties of this battle crying out to them. For the uninformed, this stretch of land is believed to be one of the top eight haunted locations in the United States.
After four days of long hours the cadets
where content to head back to the hotel and enjoy a good nights sleep.
A leisurely wake up on Sunday morning and visit to a quaint corner grill,
the Florida Avenue Grill,
culminated the organized activities of this trip. A little aircraft
maintenance problem that delayed our takeoff about thirty minutes still
allowed the cadets, Captain Beaver and Ms Brignac to arrive at New Orleans
International Airport on time.
To view a collage of
other photos from our trip
click on the link here.