On Saturday, the 24th of February, the West Orange High School armed drill team performed in the Space Coast invitational drill meet hosted at Melbourne High School. The team changed and practiced as soon as they got off of the bus with uniforms and rifles, looking sharp and collected with a determined attitude, ready to take on the competition. At the time of the performance, the team passed inspection and then moved on to the regulation sequence. The sequence went well, with the team recovering from mistakes and improving as they went along. Afterwards, a talk from cadet Turner, cadet Smith, and the Colonel helped raise the spirits of the team and get them back on their feet. The team stayed and watched the other drill teams perform the regulation sequence. After watching the other schools, the team then got back on the bus and took the ride home to bond, nap, and think about how the next performance will be different.
On Saturday, February 24th, 2018, cadets from the West Orange High School detachment attended an orienteering event held at Kelly Park. They were taken out into the woods and given a compass and a map. The cadets had to then work as a team to figure out how to get from point A to point B. There were several checkpoints that the team had to find. This was a great experience for our cadets to bond with each other and get to know each other better. It gives our cadets an opportunity to meet cadets from other schools and make new friends.
On Saturday, February 24th, 2018, the color guard from the FL-802 detachment attended a meeting held by the Air Force Association (AFA). The FL-802 color guard was at the event to present the colors. During this meeting, the AFA had a special guest come in and talk about the importance of service dogs. Service dogs can help out people, like veterans, in ways that another person cannot. The dogs are able to sense things, such as low blood sugar, or, if the person or veteran is blind, the dog can be of assistance to guide its owner. The special guest is a part of the Canine Companions for Independence organization. Canine Companions for Independence is an organization that is dedicated to helping people in need of a service dog find the perfect dog for them. The FL-802 unit from West Orange High School looks forward to attending more events like this one and learning how to help make the community better.
On Tuesday, February 20th, the Group Staff from FL-802 visited the Patrick Air Force Base. At the base, the cadets were shown how the canines get trained to be used on the job. There was a demonstration showing how the dogs bite and what they learn to do in certain situations, such as when a person gets out of their car and tries to escape. After the presentation with the canines, the cadets were taken over to the medical building inside the base. Inside, the cadets were taught how certain medical staff do their job and what types of benefits military members get. After learning about the jobs of the medical staff, the group was given the opportunity to sit on a group staff meeting being held by some of the medical staff members. The cadets took notes on how the meeting was ran and got to experience a real group staff meeting firsthand. With the information from the meeting and the experience of sitting in on the meeting, the cadets can structure their meetings in the future to make it like an Air Force group staff meeting.
On Saturday, February 17th, 2018, the West Orange AFJROTC detachment hosted the first American Legion Post 63 Drill Meet of the year. FL-802 hosted six schools at West Orange, including Ocoee, Wekiva, Maitland, Osceola, Hernando, and Sandlewood. At the event, the teams were judged in several different areas, such as inspection and exhibition. Each area had at least three judges to score the teams. The cadets in each area ensured a smooth execution of the event. These cadets voluntarily showed up early Saturday morning to aid in setting up and running this all-day event. Each school had several teams, including teams for color guard and for unarmed drill. Each school got at least one award in the ceremony portion at the end of the program. With this event being such a huge success, both West Orange High and FL-802 look forward to hosting more events like this in the future.
On Thursday, February 15th, 2018, the color guard volunteered to present the colors for the National Elementary Honor Society for Keene’s Crossing Elementary. The ceremony was held Thursday evening at the elementary school. The Honor Society inducted between 50 and 60 members, each displaying the necessary characteristics to qualify as an inductee. Such characteristics include achieving academic excellence, having a sense of responsibility, serving the community, and being a good leader. Hopefully these kids will continue through the honor societies at the middle school and high school levels. The National Honor Society program helps kids become better people, as well as better leaders, starting at such a young age. Four cadets from FL-802 participated in the event to present the colors for this meaningful event.
On Saturday, February 10th, the Kitty Hawk Air Society held a car wash to raise money for the unit. Kitty Hawk is the honor society within JROTC. This group is always doing what they can to help out their community and high school, thus enforcing their motto “Service before Self”. Cadets within the society sold tickets to their friends, family, and neighbors in advance to help fund the supplies that was needed. The event was held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Crossings Church in Winter Garden. Tickets could be bought by anyone and all cadets from our unit were invited to help out at the car wash. Many people who did not purchase a ticket in advance still stopped by to get their car washed and support the unit. There were also several kind Samaritans that offered donations. Overall, the car wash was able to raise $809, which really helps the unit by giving us a greater ability to work on making the experience in JROTC the best it could be.
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AuthorHello! I am Cadet Aryanna Sanchez; I am the head of Public Affairs. I write the stories that are put up on the website. Archives
April 2023
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