JROTC cadets from six schools give it their all

Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps students from six Mississippi and Louisiana schools came to Meadville on Saturday, Sept. 10 to take part in the “Franklin Fury” Physical Training event at Louie Mullins Memorial Stadium.

“Our primary goal was to offer a competitive format for the schools in our region,” Col. Lynn Pippen, who oversees the Franklin County High School Junior ROTC program.

“The focus for this gathering was primarily athletic in nature as most Junior ROTC programs focus on drills throughout the fall semester and then build on the physical aspects during spring.

“We felt like it was advantageous for everyone to offer this kind of program early on to help set a tempo for what we all hope to accomplish in addressing physical fitness among our cadets.”

Pippen said the feedback he and fellow FCHS Junior ROTC instructor Marjorie De La Garza have received has been overwhelmingly positive from participants.

“All of the schools seemed to leave here with smiles on their faces and very satisfied in the way things were set up,” he continued. “I have gotten very kind text messages afterwards thanking us for putting this on.”

Participating Mississippi schools included Franklin County High, Lawrence County, Jefferson County, South Pike and Ocean Springs.

Zachary High School from Louisiana also made the trip to take part in the friendly PT competition.

Among athletic activities during Saturday’s program were a one-mile run, a shuttle run, V-sit reach, curl-ups, pull-ups and flex arm hanging.

“This was the first time we’ve been able to have ‘Franklin Fury’ since before the coronavirus pandemic hit more than two years ago,” Pippen said.

“The goal was to create some comaraderie not just between school participants, but between everyone with a Junior ROTC program. We hope to see the people that were here on Saturday come back and we would like to see more teams participate.”

Pippen said each school brought mulitiple teams to participate with many spectators coming to watch the demonstrations of athletic prowess among students.

In all, 18 teams were part of the competition, which started at 9 a.m., and carried into the early afternoon.

Pippen said he believes last week’s program will serve to help participants gauge where they are in terms of their conditioning routines.

“We follow the ‘Cadet Challenge’ format, which is a part of Junior ROTC program and is a milestone for each cadet,” he continued. “For this, we took those elements and made them into a competition where every school can get an idea of their cadets’ fitness levels.”

The retired colonel went on to note that such events show the depth of Junior ROTC programs — being more than just marching and taking part in drills.

“We’re all focused on the mind and body of each cadet and want to work to build character, leadership and citizenship among our participants,” Pippen said.

“The young people that come through this program are some of the best and are looking to make themselves better. We have a lot of cadets that are involved in other school activities, like band, while others focus solely on Junior ROTC.

“At the end of the day, these young men and women commit daily to improving themselves to make a better future for themselves, their families and our community.”

Awards were presented at the end of the day with several FCHS Junior ROTC members earning recognition for their efforts.

Trever Marshall had the best male V-sit reach while Savannah Cothren and Paden Arnold had the top female and male curl-ups effort.

Seth Powell was named for having the best pull-ups.

Two FCHS squads — Male Team 1 and Specialty Team 1 — both claimed second-place honors.

Pippen expressed his thanks to the Alcorn State University ROTC program for providing proctors for each competitive event and to everyone who played a part in making the competition a success.

“We are so appreciative for those who came to help make this day special for every cadet,” he added