The Michigan City High School (MCHS) Marine Corps Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (MCJROTC) supported 3 MCHS track meets and a road clean-up in April. This was in addition to competing in their last military drill competition of the school year at Eisenhower High School in Blue Island , IL. The drill meet was conducted on the Saturday of MCHS’s Spring Break.
“We try and support as many school events as possible,” said Major Tom McGrath, the Senior Marine Instructor. “It provides us an opportunity to help our school and cheer on our athletes, some of whom are cadets.” There are four cadets on the boys track team and one cadet on the girls track team.
The cadets support numerous community organizations. One of those is the local chapter of the Marine Corps League (Michiana Marines), a group of former Marines who keep the Marine spirit and brotherhood alive throughout our nation. One of Michiana Marines projects is the Adopt-A-Highway program. The cadets assisted them in cleaning the area around Routes 421 and 6. “These are a great group of guys, who really provide strong support for our program ” said Marine Instructor Master Sergeant Jeff Benak.
The cadets will be busy through the end of the school year and into the summer. They will be supporting events involving the girls track team, VFW, Lions Club, Salvation Army, Veterans Motorcycle groups, and the LaPorte County Chamber of Commerce. They will be conducting two camps this summer- a leadership camp at the St. John’s Military Academy in Delafield, WI, and a Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics camp at The Citadel (the Military College of South Carolina) in Charleston, SC. Both camps are conducted at no cost to the cadets or Michigan City Area Schools. They are funded primarily through the U.S. Marine Corps, and augmented through donations of local organizations.
