Boot Camp

Speaker 1: It is America's greatest team, it's America's biggest team. You're going to be with people from all walks of life, all different cultures, and all different specialties of all different ages, whether they're 18 straight out high school, 33, 34. They're from other services, sometimes they just want to try it out. Other times they're joining for that greater purpose.

Speaker 2: So initially when we would see the Soldiers, they're still in a civilian mindset. They're still all about I and not about the team. Once we get them, we start training them on not only their weapons, but what it takes to be a Soldier. Physically and mentally. They basically go from the day zero Soldiers to like becoming Soldiers and people who shoot. Soldiers and people who knows how to survive in a field environment. You know, Soldiers, the people who are now thinking outside of the normal, like, how do I turn the TV off, and on, you know, what to do with my phone? Now they're like tactical. And that's that's great to see that whole transformation happen.

Speaker 1: You're going to get up early, you're going to conduct accountability, and then we're going to do PT. And that's always a constant in life whether here or on the line, whether you're National Guard, Reserve, you're going to do PT. And then after that, it's whatever training is going to happen for the day, you know, we'll make sure you get fed, you have time to shower, conduct your hygiene, but you're going to train. And it's going to be a lot of information, it's going to come very fast. It's going to come very heavy day to day. You're going to work Monday to Saturday and Sunday is that recovery day. And you can attend religious services, look after yourself and do that personal reflection. And then Monday or right back to it.

Speaker 2: Initially, getting the Soldiers to work as a team is hard. A lot of them come in as young 17 and 18 year olds. So they're still children in a sense who are just more concerned with them and their way of life. But over the course of the weeks, we teach them different techniques we have them doing different activities and we, you know, we have them write battle buddies letters to themselves to like basically allow them to see their peers beyond the uniform that they're actually people as well, that they actually may have similar interests, similar likes, similar family values and similar beliefs, which helps draw them closer to one another.

Speaker 1: Everything we do starts at the squad level and above, and everybody's got to be able to pull their weight. They have to know their job and they have to know the job of those above them as well, because we all have to be able to step up and fill those roles. So when we all pull together as a team, we can be successful, we can succeed. If you've ever wanted to just really challenge yourself to know what you're actually capable of achieving, and yes, we'll induce that stress upon you, that's something we're going to do deliberately, but that's to help bring you up into that culture, that mentality, that mindset, so you are disciplined, you are fit, you are a capable individual. And you can contribute to the team.

Speaker 2: I have found that inner courage to do things that I would normally talk myself out of. Fear holds us back, it sometimes handicaps us. But there's always courage. Like use your courage and let that drive you. There is so much more here than you think. Do not let fear of the unknown keep you from becoming great.

Howard Zanit: Basic Training, having heard stories from people about that, does scare you, because I think “boot camp.”

Darlene Anderson: Boot camp is designed to, you know, break them down and to build them back up. Everything that happened at boot camp and that they learn in boot camp is for a reason, and you find out later on.

David Smith: Well, he was firm in the decision up until the day it was time for him to actually go down.

Patricia Smith: You would've thought he was going to the guillotine. Truly, I mean, he just ... you know, I think most of it was just the unknown, scared. He'd heard some horror stories, you know. They're going to be screaming at you, they're going to be doing this, that and the other.

David Smith: I think he was just really worried about surrendering his freedom and how much control was going to be over his life.

Mary McHugh: I wasn't very worried about the Basic Training because Scott had prepared himself mentally and physically. He trained to go into Basic Training. Several months before graduation, he began a physical regimen that involved about 10 miles of jogging a day.

Holly Clayman: When we said goodbye, we really tried to hold it together, and we tried not to let him see our emotion, and we did, until we turned our backs and walked out the door.

Nancy Kennon: It was the first letter that I got from her that actually made me feel good, when she said it's going pretty good, and she really liked it, and I was actually shocked just to know that, because I was really worried about her not liking it and not liking to be told what to do, and ... but she, she fit right in.

Patti Kolk: I was very proud to be able to go to his graduation ceremony, to see them dressed in their dress uniform. It was very exciting.

Robert Kennon: We was there at that graduation that day. We was trying to figure out where could we sit so we could take some good pictures, right. And I went up to one of the officers there and he asked — I asked him, we were like, "My daughter, she's in, like, C4." At that moment he goes like, "Y'all be very proud of your daughter because she's a stick," because that's one of the highest things that they can accomplish, you know, carrying that flag, and so that made me feel really, really good.

Monique Morris: My proudest moment was when I saw him at his graduation, when I was in those stands and I could actually pick his face out of that crowd. That was my proudest moment. I'd never felt that good, not even — (crying) I don't even think the day I gave birth to him I felt that good. I really was so proud.