Taste of military
They wore uniforms, rank badges and standard black boots while marching into the North Pines Middle School gym on a Tuesday evening before Christmas. The boys had their hair cut short in the prescribed military fashion, and the girls had their hair up. But the youngest was only 9 years old. The half-dozen youths had set aside their homework and hobbies for a meeting of the Spokane Valley Young Marines. After the beginning formation, the new recruits took a test while the members talked about military history, specifically the recent anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Commanding Officer Daniel Lessiak quizzed them about what they have learned. Hands were raised, sometimes quickly and sometimes hesitantly as the youths provided the answers.
The Valley group has only been in existence since January and has at least 12 members. Lessiak, a former Marine, had become involved in the Young Marines group based in downtown Spokane beginning in 2002. “We had been getting a lot of calls from kids out here,” he said. But it was tough for the Valley kids to get downtown for the weekly meetings, called drills, so Lessiak and a couple other volunteers broke off and formed a new Valley group.
The Young Marines is a national group with set guidelines. Kids as young as 8 can join and can remain members until they graduate from high school. They learn close-order drill, military courtesies, Marine Corps history and how to wear and take care of their uniforms. They have to pass periodic physical fitness tests.
“Everything in the program there’s a reason for,” Lessiak said. “We learn close-order drill to learn to work as a team. We do everything the Marines do minus teaching them tactics and weapons.”
The youths are responsible for meeting Marine Corps grooming standards. Drug and alcohol use is forbidden. If Lessiak is out at the mall and sees one of his male students wearing fashionably drooping drawers, he’ll go up to the student and tell him the clothing is inappropriate. “They are a Young Marine 365 days a year and, during a leap year, 366 days.”
Each student starts by going through recruit training, 26 hours of study designed to familiarize them with the Marines. They graduate from boot camp as Young Marine privates. As their skills advance, so do their ranks.
Elizabeth Scheck, 16, joined the group in February. Now a sophomore at Central Valley High School, she was the honor graduate in her recruit training class. She holds the rank of Young Marine lance corporal.
“I want to be in the Marines,” she said. “I thought it would give me a head start.”
The purpose of the Young Marines is not to recruit for the Marine Corps, Lessiak said. The group doesn’t even track how many members eventually join a branch of the military. “It’s a good way to give kids an idea of what the military is like,” he said.
Scheck said she’s glad she joined the group and has liked her first taste of military life. She wants to follow in the footsteps of her grandfathers and her aunt in serving her country. Becoming a Young Marine has had other benefits, as well. “Before I joined the program, my grades weren’t the best,” Scheck said. Now, she’s more disciplined and responsible, which is reflected in improving grades.
Ryan Abitz, 10, isn’t sure if he will join the military. But he is interested in learning about it. So, when his parents wanted him to join an extracurricular program, he picked the Young Marines. He’s only been in the program since October and is considered a recruit because he hasn’t finished the 26-hour boot camp. “I’ve liked it a lot,” he said.
But the Young Marines isn’t all marching and history lessons. The kids frequently go camping as a group or with several other Young Marine units. There are trips to Silverwood and rappelling lessons. It’s important to let kids be kids, Lessiak said. “Everything we do is just for fun.”
There are also national leadership camps. There’s a space camp and one that lets kids operate flight simulators. There are also Civil War and Revolutionary War adventure camps. The kids do fund-raisers for the trips.
The Young Marines also get involved in community service projects. Recently the Valley group went to the Liberty Lake Albertsons for a day and collected 250 toys to be given to poor children at Christmas. Earlier in December they helped collect food.
Lessiak said the program can accommodate recruits with learning disabilities. “We just deal with it,” he said. “We adjust to it.”
Kids who join pay an initial fee of $160 for two uniforms and other equipment. After that the cost is $35 a year. Lessiak is trying to get some grants so his group can do more things or find businesses willing to contribute. “The units don’t make money off the kids,” he said. “It would be nice to find some sponsors. We do have some low-income families.”