Inspections, Pancakes, and Determination

Motivated senior Andrew Scherer advances from JROTC into the U.S. Army Reserve.

It’s Brigade inspection day for all JROTC Cadets and there is a nervous buzz that fills the armory. Andrew Scherer, a senior at TJ and Cadet Captain, enters the room with a griddle, butter, eggs, and pancake batter. “I wanted to do something nice for everyone and try to calm all the nerves and make them as sharp as they could be before the inspections began,” said Scherer, who is also a Company Commander (a leader of the company who educates it about ranks, uniforms, and other required knowledge).

Scherer says that JROTC has molded him into a better person and has taught him to challenge himself to the fullest extent. “JROTC gave me the self motivation and self discipline I needed,” said Scherer, who will be joining the U.S. Army Reserve June of 2010, and will be enrolled in the basic and advanced training for the Reserve, spending eight months there. “After the Army Reserve I will be attending CSU in Fort Collins and will major in Mechanical Engineering,” said Scherer, who says he is captivated by how things operate and enjoys taking things apart and rebuilding them.

“I am sad to be leaving TJ, but I know I am leaving prepared with the knowledge I need to be all I can be,” said Scherer, who says one of his biggest motivators at TJ is head football coach and math teacher, Tim Owens. “Coach showed me that there is a bad side and a good side to everyone, and that once you saw the good side, the bad side didn’t seem too bad,” said Scherer, who has lettered in football all four years at TJ.

“My dad has always been a role model in my life. He taught me to always push to go the extra mile; he taught me everything I know,” said Scherer, who acquired his passion for engineering while putting together electronic kits with his dad as a child. “I want to create newer and better things for people to use, like classrooms and buildings,” said Scherer.

Scherer says that his favorite part of JROTC is drill team. “Drill builds a sense of teamwork and doing things orderly and properly,” said Scherer. He says he also enjoys seeing the cadets’ progression over time, and interacting with each other.

Brian Wyatt is the Master Sergeant for JROTC and has been able to witness Scherer’s leadership grow stronger throughout the year. “Andrew is someone who cares about his classmates. He takes the time to really explain things to them. He is very motivating and expects each cadet to be better than he is at a given task,” said Wyatt. One way Scherer motivates his peers is by competing against them in drills. “Andrew is a born leader who has many promising attributes. He is a friendly, responsible, and a tough guy,” said Wyatt.

( Reproduced with permission of Matt Spampinato, Thomas Jefferson Journal)

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