Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46Division III: Whitewater Rafting and a Lot of Fun! BY YM/GySgt Jude Smith Capital City (NC) During the last week of July, I had the pleasure of attending the Division 3 Encampment in Camp Rainey Mountain, a Boy Scout camp in north- east Georgia. They of- fered many great activi- ties, such as White Water Rafting, Open High Ad- venture, and Open Blob. The best part about having those activities is that you can get the Division Level Palm on any of the ribbons that were a class at the camp. The parts that I enjoyed most were building friendships and White Water Rafting. Building relationships at one of these events will most likely be the highlight of anyone’s trip. You get to meet people from around the country, in this case the 3rd Division. I enjoyed watching my unit working together with other units. White Water Rafting was just incredible. We sang running cadences on the way there. Girl Scouts were on the bus as well, and they probably thought that we were crazy! This was my first time go- ing rafting outside in a real river (and not in a man-made course). I was the first on my raft to “Ride the Bull”, which was sitting up front and be- ing tormented with water and getting roughed around. We tipped over at the very end, and it was awesome! Our unit was the first to do evening colors that week. Most of our unit was brand new to events like this. We had about 45 minutes of teaching them how to fold a flag and practic- ing all the movements. It was just about time to start and then Mr. Davis (the Young Marines National Executive Direc- tor) showed up. It was show time and the unit did an out- standing job! I was so proud of them, and so was Mr. Davis. I hope everyone has a chance to attend their own division encampment and have as much fun as I did. By YM/Pvt Jorden Taylor Richland County (OH) This weekend was the best weekend of my life at Camp Lazarus, as I and many other Young Marines attended the Ohio regi- mental games at Camp Lazarus for 3 days compet- ing for the Buckeye Cup. But at the end of the day it’s not about competition, it’s about all the Young Marines who attended having a good time, learning new things and also meeting new Young Marines. I had a great time. I met new Young Marines from units I didn’t even know existed. I made at least one friend from every unit. But I want to first thank my Unit Com- mander, Mrs. Prosser. She prepared us for this. She tells us “the Young Marines go beyond just our unit,it’s a big Young Marines world out there”. And this week- end, I think Richland County Young Marines have seen that how many units there are in Ohio, and that isn’t even including all of the battalions/units that are out of the state. I was amazed! Mrs. Prosser works really hard just for us and makes sure we keep and hold our bearing, act respectfully and do what we’re being taught. We did, thanks to her and all of our staff and Adult Volunteers. This would have never hap- pened if it wasn’t for you. I will always be a Young Marine and no one can take that away from me, be- cause we have earned that title.Ooraah! By YM/LCpl Michael Coleman Chesty Puller (OH) I am YM/LCpl Michael Coleman. I am in the Chesty Puller Young Marines unit based out of Ravenna, Ohio. My unit went to Columbus, Ohio to attend the Regimental/Buckeye Cup Games. It was very fun. We did Drill Team, Col- or Guard, Fire Building, Shelter Building, and studied Marksmanship and worked on our Land Navigation/ Map and Com- pass skills. We were also allowed to play Football, Kickball, and GaGa (a game very similar to dodge ball). If I get the chance ever go again,I most definitely would, because I met a lot of different Young Marines there, and we all had a lot of fun. Ohio Regiments: A Competition for the Buckeye Cup YOUNG MARINES ESPRIT 27