The few, the proud
90 Grants students drill through JrROTC

Marine Corps JROTC 2nd Lt. Timo Molina spins his rifle Wednesday afternoon during practice at Grants High School. The Grants teams are preparing for a competition March 1st at Rio Grande High School, as well as the Naitonal drill competition on May 1st in Florida.[Photo by Jeff Jones/Independent]

By Jim Tiffin
Cibola County Bureau

GRANTS — There are 90 students from Grants High School in the Marine Corps JrROTC program instructed by Gunnery Sgt. George Garcia and First Sgt. Rick Madison.

Of those, 42 are in the “armed” and “unarmed” drill teams, Garcia said. The armed team is all males this year and uses rifles. The unarmed team is all female and does not use rifles. There have been female members of the armed drill team in the past, Garcia said.

The armed drill team won the U.S. National Championship in 2004 and has been invited back to the competition each year in Florida since.

The team is currently involved in fund raising events to be able to pay for its trip to nationals again, Garcia said.

Krystal Garcia, a sophomore at Grants High School, is one of 90 members of the Marine Corps JrROTC program. She said she envisions a military career, even with the disapproval of her mother.

“I have leaned discipline, leadership and comradeship in this program,” she said.

She is a member of the all female “unarmed” drill team and said she plans to be in the program until she graduates.
“I want to be the cadet commander,” she said.

“Everyone in the program wants to be the commander and we are all competing for it all the time, it’s tough.”

The competition is challenging and requires keeping grades up and staying out of trouble, but, no matter, she said it is something she wants badly.

Even if someone else gets it I will be happy for them because they are part of my team,” she said.

Krystal’s mother Valerie Garcia said she does no want her daughter to go into the military because of the war in Iraq.

The program has really helped her with study habits. I really didn’t think she would stick with it,” Garcia said. Krystal is in the second year of JrROTC.

“I will try to discourage her when she tries to go into the military though,” she said.

Timo Molina, a senior at GHS, said he intends to make a military career as a Marine drill sergeant.

“I’ve got my life all planned out,” he said.

Molina said he will join the Marines, become a drill sergeant for 20 years, retire at age 38 and return to Grants to run the JrROTC program.

“I was getting into trouble my freshman year and a friend of mine, Kyle Henderson, told me I should join the JrROTC,” Molina said.

“So I did, and if it hadn’t been for this program I would probably be in jail today failing all my classes,” he said.
His mother Mary Ann Molina disagrees with that assessment.

“Timo has always been a great child, we have never had any problems with him at all,” she said.

“He is more disciplined and more committed today than before, but I am concerned about him becoming a Marine because of he war,” she said.

“I don’t like it (Timo’s plans to join the Marines), but if he decides to do it I will be 110 percent behind him,” she said.,

Timo said he feels like he has made great friends at school because of the JrROTC program. His mother said the program has motivated him to get better grades.

Both Krystal and Timo said they have a sense of belonging to something that is bigger then they are, a group of people who are like a large, extended family and who will always be there for them.

Awesome classes
“The leadership classes are awesome,”Timo Molina, a 17-year-old junior is the cadet Sgt. Major of the drill team, said. “You feel like part of a family.

Throughout the day, regular ROTC classes are offered as a regular part of the school’s curriculum. In the leadership area, each cadet is allowed to be in charge of a platoon, which is 20-30 members.

They conduct drills and other exercises and the leader of the unit is expected to show the leadership skills and knowledge he or she has gained in class. These leaders are promoted up through the ranks as the professional military does.

Part of the drills include marching and basic rifle drills, such as present arms, order arms, and shoulder arms.

The drill team’s performance every year is a little different.
“We let the kids come up with a lot of the ideas and innovations,” Garcia said. “Some of the drill teams around the state videotape us to be able to learn drills.”

Cadets show interest in the program by keeping their grades up, following the code and attending practices, fund raisers, drills, color guards and performances.

Better grades, dedicated
Students in the program are required to have a 2.0 GPA, and follow a conduct and behavior code that is fairly strict.

The members of the unit are seemingly serious, committed and dedicated, practicing from 6:30-7:45 a.m., before school and from 3:30-5 p.m., after school Monday through Friday of every school week, he said.

“The students call us and sometimes beg us to drill on weekends,” he said.

Garcia and Madison are retired Marines who are instructors at the school and as such, teach a curriculum that includes leadership, ethics and military history.

“We set our standards high, but the students set them even higher,” he said.

Molina said he has spent three years in the JrROTC and the past two on the drill team.

Fund raisers
The JrROTC will have 42 drill team members at the Elks Crab Crack Saturday night.

The drill team will perform, then will serve dinner to those attending the event. At the end of the night a hat is passed and often the drill team earns $500 or more to be able to help pay for its annual competition in Florida.

Tentatively, on March 15, at the VFW Biker Run, drill team members will help with the event and will have a raffle, with proceeds going to help the team pay for its travel expenses.

Krystal Garcia, 16, a sophomore, said the instructors and members of the JrROTC are people that are like a big friendly family and are reliable.

“It’s nice to go to school and see the other cadets there,” she said.

Garcia is a 1978 graduate of GHS, who joined the Marines, and when he retired, became interested in the JrROTC program here.

Madison became interested in JrROTC once he retired and has been here for 14 years.

The national competition is May 1-6 in Daytona Beach, including travel days and teams are not automatically invited, even if they have won.

Every year the team has to present a resume with the event they have won, performances and community service it has performed.

“The competition committee evaluates the resumes and then sends an invitation,” Garcia said.

To contact reporter Jim Tiffin call (505) 287-2197 or e-mail: jtiffin.independent@yahoo.com.