JROTC Marks Veterans Day 

By Nick Byrne '11 

This Veterans Day, MSG Clifford Stein led a group of 16 cadets to Manhattan’s VA Hospital on 23rd Street to thank and honor veterans for their sacrifice and service.

Each cadet wrote a handwritten letter to a veteran and gathered with patients in small groups to discuss the Regiment, military service, and ultimately what it means to wear a United States military uniform.

Dressed in their Class A Blues, this group of 12 freshman and four sophomores would soon realize how important it is to remember and thank our veterans.

Sophomore Servio Tuero ’18 believes the visit was a great success.“They seemed very appreciative of the fact that there are still young men out there that think enough of them to put on the uniform and come there and thank them for their service,” Tuero said.

“When I say we’re going to go visit these vets in the hospital, they’re thinking young warriors coming back from Afghanistan with missing limbs,” MSG Stein said. “But a lot of these guys, maybe even most of these guys, have fallen on hard times, and this is the only health care that’s available to them—maybe through bad luck, maybe through bad decisions. But then I reiterate the fact that it does not negate the fact that they served and deserve to be remembered and thanked.”

LTC Roy Campbell, USA (Ret.), Xavier's Senior Army Instructor, further emphasized the visit and Veterans Day itself.

“The cadets enjoyed the experience immensely and the veterans were grateful for their presence,” LTC Campbell said. “We cannot thank veterans enough for their service, but it is important to try.”