good deed!!!

[RubHer Yellow Ducky]

McCormick High?s JROTC shares the holiday spirit

Jeslyn Thomas, 14, paints 6-year-old Alishia Thomas? arm while La jensen Gilchrist, 15, prepares to paint another child Saturday during the first McCormick High School JROTC Christmas festival. (Staff photo by Jennifer Colton)



By JENNIFER COLTON/Index-Journal staff writer

Sunday, December 16, 2007 1:24 AM EST
McCORMICK -- With Santa hats and smiles, the cadets of McCormick High School?s JROTC program offered more than 100 people a Christmas festival, free of charge, Saturday in McCormick.

?What we?re doing today is a service learning project for our cadets,? Maj. Rod Tyson said. ?They?re learning the importance of giving back to the community.?

With help from parent volunteers, the National Guard and local U.S. Army recruiters, the cadets offered seven games, a hot dog lunch, face painting, a rock-climbing wall, photos with Santa and trips to the Army H-3 Hummer, which featured video games.

?I really didn?t know what to expect, but I am absolutely pleased with the turnout,? Tyson said. ?It?s something we want to continue.?


Saturday marked the first time for the JROTC Christmas festival, but high attendance numbers left the students excited.

?I think it?s been a great event,? said Joshua Bentley, a senior at MHS and JROTC battalion commander. ?I think it?s something we could make an annual event.?

Despite the rain, Sgt. 1st Class Larry Brewton, an Army reserve recruiter out of Greenwood, had a constant stream of children visit the H-3 Hummer, complete with an Xbox, DVD player and ?top of the line? stereo system.

?I?m here to support the ROTC and the function they have going on today,? Brewton said. ?I think it?s really great. It gives the kids an idea about the ROTC. We do other things. It?s not just Army, Army, Army.?

Parent volunteers served lunch in the school cafeteria and also said they would like to offer the event again next year.

?I think it?s great,? parent Kimberly Johnson said. ?It?s exciting to see something the whole community can get involved in. Through the (JROTC) program, my son has made a good turnaround with his grades and his attitude in life.?

The McCormick High School JROTC program has 35 cadets right now, Tyson said, and the students chose to put on the Christmas festival after researching McCormick.

?They just thought this would be a good thing to do in the community,? Tyson said. ?I think doing things like this for the public is only going to make us stronger and grow our numbers.?