Phoenix Battalion Future Soldiers repeat the oath of enlistment prior to the We Salute Wounded Warrior Softball game in November.
Veterans
Groups Saluted, Recognized by Phoenix Battalion
Story by Mike Scheck, USAREC, Phoenix Battalion
Photos by Jorge Gomez, Phoenix Battalion
Dec. 9, 2014
Soldiers and Future Soldiers from the Phoenix Army Recruiting Battalion participated in one of the largest Veterans Day events in the Phoenix area last month.
Seventy-five battalion Future Soldiers were part of a multi-service ceremonial swear-in during the We Salute Wounded Warriors Softball game Nov. 8, at Salt River Fields in Scottsdale, Arizona.
The ceremony was only one of the events at the We Salute program, which included a tribute and proclamation from Arizona Governor Jan Brewer to local World War II veterans, a former Golden Knights skydiver parachuting into center field while unfurling an American flag, a B-17 flyover, and the Wounded Warriors Softball Team taking on celebrities from the Phoenix area.
Future Soldier Robert Contreras, a participant from the Chandler Recruiting Center, said he is following in the footsteps of his uncles who are veterans of every branch of the military. He saw the positive influence that military service had on his uncles and the opportunities it afforded them.
“I know that the Army will mold me into a better person and help me complete college,” Contreras said. “It’s the best decision I could have made, and it’s a huge step to becoming successful in life.”
Contreras, a senior at Chandler High School, says when he was asked to participate in the swear-in, he did not consider it a big deal.
“As soon as we were put in formation, marched onto the field and heard the crowd cheering, my opinion of the event changed,” Contreras said. “I felt proud of my decision [to enlist in the Army] and it motivated me even more.”
Sgt. 1st Class Elias Wejbe, the Paradise Valley Recruiter center leader, said he was surprised by the turnout of Future Soldiers.
“We put out the call for volunteers among the company Future Soldier leaders and the response was incredible, considering most of the Future Soldiers drove themselves to the event,” Wejbe said. “It was an honor for us to pay tribute to the World War II veterans, and all of our Future Soldiers were impressed by the ceremony and the response from the crowd.”
The We Salute event is part-tribute, part-fundraiser and part-information exchange with all the major Arizona veteran organizations hosting table setups and offering information assistance.
The yearly event is the brainchild of retired Lt. Col. Tom Eisiminger, vice president of a local biomedical firm. Eisiminger, a former Portland Recruiting Battalion commander, said the event provided a learning opportunity for Future Soldiers.
“The We Salute event was a great way to showcase the successful lineage and traditions of the U.S. Army for the Future Soldiers,” Eisiminger said. “They had an opportunity to interact with both the World War II Army veterans, and with the members of the Wounded Warrior Amputee Softball Team, which comprises Army veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom and even an Army veteran of Desert Storm.”
Story by Mike Scheck, USAREC, Phoenix Battalion
Photos by Jorge Gomez, Phoenix Battalion
Dec. 9, 2014
Soldiers and Future Soldiers from the Phoenix Army Recruiting Battalion participated in one of the largest Veterans Day events in the Phoenix area last month.
Seventy-five battalion Future Soldiers were part of a multi-service ceremonial swear-in during the We Salute Wounded Warriors Softball game Nov. 8, at Salt River Fields in Scottsdale, Arizona.
The ceremony was only one of the events at the We Salute program, which included a tribute and proclamation from Arizona Governor Jan Brewer to local World War II veterans, a former Golden Knights skydiver parachuting into center field while unfurling an American flag, a B-17 flyover, and the Wounded Warriors Softball Team taking on celebrities from the Phoenix area.
Future Soldier Robert Contreras, a participant from the Chandler Recruiting Center, said he is following in the footsteps of his uncles who are veterans of every branch of the military. He saw the positive influence that military service had on his uncles and the opportunities it afforded them.
“I know that the Army will mold me into a better person and help me complete college,” Contreras said. “It’s the best decision I could have made, and it’s a huge step to becoming successful in life.”
Contreras, a senior at Chandler High School, says when he was asked to participate in the swear-in, he did not consider it a big deal.
“As soon as we were put in formation, marched onto the field and heard the crowd cheering, my opinion of the event changed,” Contreras said. “I felt proud of my decision [to enlist in the Army] and it motivated me even more.”
Sgt. 1st Class Elias Wejbe, the Paradise Valley Recruiter center leader, said he was surprised by the turnout of Future Soldiers.
“We put out the call for volunteers among the company Future Soldier leaders and the response was incredible, considering most of the Future Soldiers drove themselves to the event,” Wejbe said. “It was an honor for us to pay tribute to the World War II veterans, and all of our Future Soldiers were impressed by the ceremony and the response from the crowd.”
The We Salute event is part-tribute, part-fundraiser and part-information exchange with all the major Arizona veteran organizations hosting table setups and offering information assistance.
The yearly event is the brainchild of retired Lt. Col. Tom Eisiminger, vice president of a local biomedical firm. Eisiminger, a former Portland Recruiting Battalion commander, said the event provided a learning opportunity for Future Soldiers.
“The We Salute event was a great way to showcase the successful lineage and traditions of the U.S. Army for the Future Soldiers,” Eisiminger said. “They had an opportunity to interact with both the World War II Army veterans, and with the members of the Wounded Warrior Amputee Softball Team, which comprises Army veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom and even an Army veteran of Desert Storm.”