By Ralph Tuminez
Joining the military isn’t for everyone. It’s tough, physical work that also demands a lot of mental power. But for some, involvement with the military can begin as early as high school. Some high schools have the U.S. Army Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps program, or JROTC — created in 1916 with the intention “To Motivate Young People to be Better Citizens”.
Of course, people join the military for all kinds of reasons. According to Task and Purpose, some of the main reasons that people joined the Army are occupational, like the adventure of service, the job stability and benefits such as financial aid for college or discounts on numerous services. Some joined for institutional reasons, as it was family tradition or they felt a need to serve. Other reasons range from wanting to turn one’s life around to helping fight off terrorism.
In the Alpine School District, the option to join a JROTC program is not available to students, which had led to some students transferring to another school district in order to pursue a military career. According to a 2007 Deseret News article, Matthew Lemley, a junior at the time, used to attend Orem High but then transferred to Provo High to participate in the JROTC program there.
During the school year at Orem High, recruiters from different military branches visit the school throughout the day, especially during lunch, in an effort to find new recruits for the armed forces. Students can be seen doing push-ups or pull-ups in their lunchroom to show their current physical ability and their readiness to serve their country. Of course, not everybody who participates in those challenges joins the military, but there are plenty from Orem High who have.
One of these former students is DJ Tuminez, “[I] graduated back in 2004. High school was great, I had the honor to be mentored by great teachers such as Mr. Downs, Mr. Downey, Mr. Logan, Ms. Layosa and Mr. Asay.” DJ and his brother, Jed, wanted to join the Army right after high school. “We were gonna enlist in the Infantry after watching Saving Private Ryan.”
DJ and his brother weren’t citizens of the United States at the time of joining the military. They emigrated from the Philippine Islands to the United States in 2001, despite being in the country legally, immigrants without green cards, or Permanent Residence Cards, are not allowed to enlist in the military. This delayed the enlistment of the brothers. “[S]ince we didn’t get our green card until 2008, I didn’t join until ‘09 as an Armor Crewman,” DJ said.
DJ and Jed took inspiration from different war films and shows, like Black Hawk Down and Band of Brothers. Initially they had planned to join the Infantry because of Saving Private Ryan, but ended up in different divisions. DJ joined the Armored Division and served in the Charlie Company of the 1st Battalion of the 6th Infantry Regiment, under the 2nd Brigade of the 1st Armored Division, while Jed joined the Airborne Rangers.
Once he joined, he found the transition from civilian life to military life easy, “[It was] lots of physical training. Once I got the routine down, I was golden.” DJ shares one memorable moment from the first months of his service.
“When I first got to my company during boot camp, I was assigned a locker where I can secure my gear. Secure means that you gotta have a lock in it at all times. I didn’t realize that my locker was broken, so you can still open it even though there’s a lock. Woke up in the middle of the night and found out all my gear was gone. One of the Drill Sergeants had gotten into it, he hid [my gear] and locked it in a different locker. Luckily, my buddies saw which locker, so they helped me out. Only thing was that I had to drag the entire thing to his office so he could unlock it. Got chewed and smoked, or lectured, that night but I got all my gear back.”
After serving for 4 years, DJ left active duty in 2013 as a Gunner for the M1A2 Abrams tank and joined the Army Reserves as a Financial Tech. During this time he was deployed to Kuwait for a year, being deployed once. After leaving the Army, DJ went to college at UVU and went into Hospitality Management.
Another former Orem High Tiger who joined the military is Second Lieutenant Andrew Jefferson, who graduated with the class of 2009. He said, “During my time at OHS I was involved with the cross country and track teams. My senior year I was one of the boy co-captains and I was also on the yearbook staff. I’d like to think I was friends with most everyone at the school, and was nominated to compete in the Mr. Orem pageant my senior year. So in short, I had a very good experience at Orem High.”
At first, Andrew didn’t plan on joining the military right out of high school, “I was planning on attending UVU briefly before serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Due to circumstances outside my control, I learned I had lost both my admission and scholarship. I was wondering what to do when the recruiters called. I felt good about it and never looked back. I enlisted June 5th, 2009 as a dental assistant.”
Andrew first served with Bravo Company of the 328th Combat Support Hospital operating out of Fort Douglas in Salt Lake, but after serving his LDS mission in Knoxville, Tennessee, he was reassigned to the 143rd Dental Company, which also operates out of Fort Douglas. Andrew also enjoyed the opportunity to train in South Carolina, Texas, California, Wisconsin, Hawaii and the Dominican Republic.
“Something unique about the military is that you get the chance to work with the absolute best individuals and some less than ideal people. It was my experiences in the military that led me to my chosen career path of being an army dentist.” He is currently pursuing his career in dentistry at Roseman University with an Army Scholarship.
During his training in South Carolina, Andrew was recognized as the Soldier of the Cycle. This honor recognizes a soldier that best represents or embodies the values of the Army, after a nomination and selection process at the end of a Basic Combat Training (BCT) cycle. “It helped reinforce my decision to join the army. Overall I hope it also showed that one doesn’t have to stoop to common military stereotypes in order to be successful in the military. Plus, you know, bragging rights.”
Andrew noted that his service in the military helped prepare him for his LDS mission as well as teaching him other values. “Growing up most of my interactions were with members of the church, or individuals with similar values. BCT was a blend of cultures and backgrounds I had never before come in contact with. It helped me learn how to interact and respect those with differing viewpoints on life.”
Another thing he learned during his service was the principle of making a decision once and commitment. “If you want to be successful in school, work, relationships or other worthwhile goals, make the decision once and commit to it. If you are making the decision week by week, you’re more likely to rationalize reasons on why to give up on those goals and aspirations.” He lives by that and has the goals to “survive dental school with a smile,” love his wife, keep family close, become a successful dentist and to always remember his roots.
Tiger Times Staff
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