MINT HILL, NC – Recently, two local high school rivals competed in the Annual CMS JROTC Book Study Competition. The Butler High School Bulldogs team finished in first place in the division, sending the team to the District to compete against other area winners. Independence finished in second place in the area competition.
The Bulldogs eventually won the District Championship as this year’s CMS JROTC Book Champions. The Final Four were Hopewell, Olympic, Providence, and Butler. A total of 20 CMS JROTC programs entered the annual competition. The Butler team project was titled “Funding our Purpose.” This is the first time Butler has won the District since the JROTC program began in 2003.
Each team had to create, design, and produce a community service project. It was a challenge for many of the student cadets because they could not have any contact with people due to the pandemic, so it was all done virtually, which presented challenges for all the participating programs. However, these youngsters are JROTC cadets, and an important skill they must learn is to adapt to different situations. Having former career military officers and non-commissioned professionals as mentors certainly gave the student the opportunity to learn how to adapt and overcome obstacles.
The cadets have all been dedicated citizen-advocates, especially during these difficult times with the COVID-19 pandemic. Their involvement speaks volumes about their personal commitment to community service.
“I’m proud of our amazing cadets for being awesome citizen-advocates with their involvement in our school and community, and leading the way with their phenomenal initiative to give back through selfless service,” said Lieutenant Colonel Ott Siebert, JROTC Department Chair at Butler.
The Independence High School Patriot team developed a project focused on teaching and mentoring EC students weekly. “Considering all the challenges and hurdles, our cadets overcame and produced an excellent project under the circumstances,” said Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Jenkins, Senior Aerospace Instructor at Independence.
The team members who are now the CMS 2020 District Champions from Butler are Lieutenant Colonel Nahomi Munoz, Major Anthony Tran, Major Yahir Almanza, Second Lieutenant Danica Plihcik, Second Lieutenant Logan Donaldson, and Sergeant First Class Madison Mills.
The Independence Book Study Cadet team members include Major Tran, Captain Bell, Captain Yagodzinskiy, Lieutenant Benavides, Tech Sergeant Par, and Tech Sergeant Mendia.
We congratulate all the student-cadets who participated in the competition and gave it their all. Congratulations also go to the dedicated program leaders and faculty who all put in many hours to assist and provide guidance in making this annual event another success.
