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 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54By YM/GySgt Celeste Hamper Ashtabula County (OH) As the summer starts to settle down and we all go back to school, I wish everyone good luck in the coming school year. As my school year started, my first assigned task was to write an essay for my AP English class. Our assignment was to write a short, 300-500 word essay on a single thing in which you believe, or a value that shapes your moral character. I gave this a lot of thought, as I believe in many things. After thinking about the assignment, I knew what I wanted to write about. This summer I attended Advanced Leadership School and it impacted my life in many ways. I came back with a lot of respect toward my fellow Young Marines that I had met while being in Oregon for two weeks. I learned not to judge any- one about anything.Everyone is not good at everything.Some people are better at some things than others. But this does not mean that we judge them for what they are capable and incapable of doing. As Young Marines, we treat everyone with respect. Considering this, I decided I wanted to write about respect. Since the Young Marines program has been a huge part of my life since I joined at age 8,I decided to add it into my essay, as it is always on my mind. There are many aspects of respect.It could deal with the way you treat someone, the way you respect the flag, or even the way you respect your elders and all others in charge of you as stated in the creeds and obligation. Respect is something we are to follow. I believe in respect. Respect is a deep feeling for someone or something elicited by their abilities, qualities, or achieve- ments. By learning respect for certain people and for certain objects, I have learned that having courtesy is a very impor- tant lesson in life. Having respect all starts off with listening to someone and following what they have to say. In Young Marines we have a creed that we have to follow, “Obey my parents and all others in charge of me whether young or old.” When I joined the Young Marines, I promised to follow that creed and live by it; I follow that creed everyday. This past summer, I attended Advanced Leadership School in Oregon. This is where the top 50 Young Marines in the coun- try gather to learn and teach our subordinates for 2 weeks. While I attended this school, I answered back to my elders with “Aye, Aye Ma’am (or Sir.)” Everyone should have respect for their elders. This is one thing that is getting lost with the younger generation. As a Young Marine, I am obligated to do it and show others the right way to do so. When I am asked to do something, I do it right away, without hesitation. Having obedience for others is a key to respect. For example, in everyday life, your chances of meeting a veteran are very high. Most people may not know what to say to one. The first thing one should do is show respect and stop and shake the veteran’s hand and tell him or her thank you for their service. Next, you should continue showing respect and listen to any story they might have to tell, (they have lots.) I believe veterans have earned the most respect in my life. They have sacrificed so much for our country and every person should show them respect. As a Young Marine, we are taught to show respect toward our veterans. There have been multiple times while I have been in uni- form that I have been approached by a veteran and told that they have served in the service for many years. I enjoy every moment and every hand shake from every veteran I meet. Since the number of veterans who have served in the past wars for our country are starting to get smaller, I take in every story and remember it as if it could be the last. I believe that we need to showmore respect shown to our veterans. Overall, everyone should have respect for everyone. I believe respect should especially be shown toward the people that gave their all for us. Respect should be shown to all others , whether young or old just like the Young Marines creed says. I believe in respect. Semper Fidelis. The Young Marines: We Learn All About Respect By YM SSGT Brooke Montgomery Mountain View (CO) I had an amazing time at Senior Leadership School. First of all, it was my first time travel- ing by myself. It was also my first time visit- ing the State of Oregon and being away from home for a week, which wasn’t as bad as I ex- pected it to be. There were at least 10 other girls in my bay (we were staying at the army base Camp Rilea). I truly got to know most of the girls in my bay, and almost everybody I met was from a different state (other than Colorado). The Advanced Leaders were there for the entire week and were there to help moti- vate, instruct, and guide me and the 80 other Young Marines attending SLS. If there is one thing that I learned at Senior Lead- ership School, it would be to never give up. Through the week I was in Oregon, I faced many challenges. Mainly the ob- stacle course in which all 81 Young Ma- rines proceeded to try and accomplish. I got stuck on this one certain obstacle, as I was hanging on by my elbows. I tried this obstacle over and over and over again, it soon came to the point where I needed assistance, but I still made it over the ob- stacle (and I never gave up). I know now as a Senior Leader that I can face any obstacle that stands in my way. A Young Marine Learns to Never Give Up at SLS YOUNG MARINES ESPRIT ONLINE 45