IN THE NEWS Pre-freshman Cadet Jonathan Morse answers a checklist of questions during his inspection.
CALLIE COMBS & TRACEY BELLINA-MILAZZO
Senior Cadet LtCol John Crowson and senior Cadet SgtMaj Kieff cut and pass out the cake during the birthday ceremony. Senior Cadet Major Brooks Simons and senior Cadet LtCol John Crowson gather gifts during the annual MCJROTC Toys for Tots drive.
MCJROTC
Cadet Major Brooks Simons. Both the Armed Drill Platoon, led by Cadet LtCol Crowson, and the Battalion Color Guard, directed by senior Cadet Captain Noah Griffin, received outstanding marks. After strong competitive performances, the MCJROTC celebrated the Marine Corps’s 241st birthday with its own traditional cake-cutting ceremony for friends and family. Helping lead the festive occasion, the group welcomed back to campus honoree LtCol Brandon Gregoire ’91. LtCol Gregoire, who has completed several operational deployments to Iraq and counts the Bronze Star Medal among his many honors, was commissioned in 1996 via the Officer Candidates Class program and has since served in intelligence billets at the battalion, regimental, divisional, and Marine expeditionary force level. He currently serves as the inspector-instructor of Intelligence Support Battalion, Marine Forces Reserve in New Orleans. During the ceremony, battalion commander Cadet LtCol Crowson cut the cake with an NCO (non-commissioned officer) sword. Following tradition, the first piece was given to LtCol Gregoire as guest of honor, while second and third pieces went to the oldest and youngest cadets present, senior Cadet Second Lieutenant Buchanan Elms and pre-freshman Cadet Private Adam Essa. Despite a busy first semester, the MCJROTC also gave back. In conjunction with the annual U.S. Marine Corps Toys for Tots program, cadets spearheaded a two-week gift drive to help spread Christmas cheer to children in need. With the help of their fellow Blue Jays, the group collected nearly 1,600 toys for area youth. This staggering number not only represents a 50 percent donation increase over last year, but also outpaces the MCJROTC’s prior greatest collection effort by 470 toys.
School Year Starts with Competition, Celebration, and Service Members of Jesuit’s 2016–17 MCJROTC not only worked hard during first semester, but also found time to celebrate the armed forces and make meaningful community contributions. Led by LtCol Tim Huete ’76 and Master Gunnery Sergeant J.R. Piseno, this year’s battalion commander is senior Cadet LtCol John Crowson. Senior Cadet SgtMaj Travis Kieff serves as the program’s battalion sergeant major. To kick off the school year, the MCJROTC competed at meets in Destrehan, Ponchatoula, and Brenham (Texas). In Destrehan, the group finished first among 12 schools from Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. Competition continued as Jesuit hosted its own drill meet in January. An all Marine regional meet is scheduled for March. During its annual inspection, the MCJROTC received overall high marks from Marines with the Marine Forces Reserve Headquarters in Algiers. The entire Cadet Battalion—106 students in all—underwent a personnel inspection. Of that group, 13 exemplary cadets received outstanding grades. Those recognized include freshmen Dylan Blady, Sebastian Maraldo, Terrol Perkins, Evan Taffaro, and B.J. Williams; sophomore Gus Huete; juniors Andrew Gruntz, Alec Maraldo, Nathan Pajares, and Thomas Sagona; seniors Noah Griffin, Austin Ros, and Jared Tonglet. The overall Best Inspected Platoon was Second Platoon, Company A, led by senior Cadet Second Lieutenant Christian Crout. In addition to the personnel review, each platoon was inspected in unarmed drill. The Best Drill Platoon was Battalion Staff Platoon, Headquarters Company, headed by senior
FALL/WINTE R 20 1 6 | J AY NOT E S
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