branch night has always been a special day for me and one i look forward to when it’s my time. in high school, before i really understood what any of the branches really meant or what made them THAT exciting, i would wait every year for all the USMA branch night posts on instagram. i would scroll through their photos for hours, envisioning myself in their shoes one day, imagining what the beginning of the end of their college lives felt like.
the little West Point-wannabe in me LIVED for USMA Branch Night until it became my friends' turns to branch; their turn to find out what their hard earned careers held for them. so, instead of only watching some West Point cadets, that I don’t even know, open their envelops, i now get the absolute pleasure and enjoyment of watching my peers, friends, and mentors find out what all their sacrifices and hard worker earned them.
this year was extremely special to me. as a sophomore in high school, i had made friends with seniors who were college bound and ready to move on into adulthood as i had just learned how to drive a car and got my license. i knew them at a time when they were going through their first heart break, moved away from home for the first time, and said goodbye to the town we had spent our lives growing up in. we saw each other at our most naive and curious phases, and before they all went to college, we were just high schoolers trying to figure things out. i always knew that the two years that separated our time lines would allow me the chance to learn and grow from them, and i have watched and learned from them as i did when i was 15. now being 19 and seeing them be a little bit into their 20s, it gives me all the validation and security to know that whatever god you want to believe in, really does have a plan for all of us and that everything happens for a reason.
flash forward four years, i made even more senior year friends as a sophomore in college (talk about history repeating itself), but it feels different now. all the soon-to-be butter bars i have had the privilege of meeting as an adult in college made it that much more bitter sweet to see all their successes and end goals get accomplished. for most, I only got to see them as full adults and their final sprint to the finish line. i only got to see them go to their super bowl and work in the off season;), but i never saw them as young teenagers, trying to piece their lives and what college they would one day want to go to. i didn’t get to see them as a lost first year in rotc, making dumb mistakes like not knowing how to put on their uniform correctly or getting nervous around cadre. instead, i got to see them put in the hours in training and in school, because when I met them, they were just 18 months out from being a new second lieutenant, which i can say has flown by. this class also taught me how small the army world really is and how easy it is to meet others.
i have crossed paths and made friend with people at other schools that i would've never made if rotc didn't put us at the right place at the right time. these friendships i hold close to my heart. we have put in the effort to learn from those who you don't see everyday and having them go above and beyond to be a friend and mentor to me from hundreds of miles away is humbling.
it has truly been my pleasure and honor to see these young men and women achieve a goal that some couldn't even fathom doing. having to sacrifice a piece of the college experience for early pt days, field training weekends, and summer special school trainings and camps can sometimes get the best of you, but these people saw it through and are making it that much harder for me to send them on their way. i am incredibly proud of the graduating class of 2023 and I hope to be just like you when I grow up:)
with all my love,
♡steff
Class of 2023
Seminole Battalion (best battalion everr)
Edward Pedraja
School: Florida State University
Component: National Guard
Branch: Field Artillery
Major: Exercise Physiology
Minors: Psychology & Chemistry
Joshua Gear
School: Florida State University
Component: Active Duty
Branch: Field Artillery
Major: Finance
Joshua Peach
School: Florida State University
Component: Active Duty
Branch: Quartermaster
Major: International Affairs
Steven Londono
School: Florida State University
Component: Active Duty
Branch: Military Intelligence
Major: International Affairs
Minor: Economics
Special School: Air Assault
Zach Irwin
School: Florida State University
Component: Active Duty
Branch: Chemical
Major: Business Management Major
Special School: Air Assault
Zane Whitwell
School: Florida State University
Component: Active Duty
Branch: Engineers Branch Detail Infantry
Major: Psychology
Eagle Battalion
James Allinder
School: Embry Riddle Aeronautical University
Component: Active Duty
Branch: Military Intelligence
Major: Homeland Security
Minors: Arabic & Terrorism Studies
Special School: Air Assault
Maddie Murphy
School: Stetson University
Component: Active Duty
Branch: Med Services
Major: Health Sciences
Minor: Psychology
Special School: Air Assault
cute meeting story: spring cftx 2022. i was opfor for her ambush lane. she was doing EPW, & as she was clearing me she called me pretty:')now she's my go-to girl & biggest inspo!!
Palmetto Battalion
Brie Sikes
School: The Citadel
Component: Active Duty
Branch: Military Police
Major: Intel & Security
Minor: Criminal Justice
Varsity Sport: The Citadel Women's Soccer
future plans: getting married in may of 2023!! (i'm a bridesmaid hehehe)
Suncoast Battalion
Mike Lowery
School: University of South Florida
Component: Active Duty
Branch: Field Artillery Branch Detail Military Intelligence
Special Schools: Air Assault
when i say that this is MY GUY, i mean it. no one has my back more than this man. youre my dawg, mike. keep crushing it.
Norwich University
Megan Sacripanti
Component: Active Duty
Branch: Field Artillery
Major: Criminal Justice
Minor: Leadership Studies
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