The National Air force celebrated their birthday right before Fall Break on September 18, 1947. We would like to take a moment and wish our own RFROTC a happy birthday and highlight what the USAF is all about.
According to military benefits, the official Air Force Birthday is recognized as September 18, 1947, turning 71 today, which is the date of the passage of the National Security Act of 1947.
I think it’s convenient how it’s the day after National Constitution day. That legislation created what would later become to known as the United States Department of Defense, which established the United States Air Force as a separate branch of military service. Believe it or not , our 33rd president , Harry S. Truman came up with the idea of the US. Air Force honoring the Air Force with a national birthday.
[Photo Credit: Forbes]
According to military.com President Truman signed the National Security Act on the day of this National holiday and created this celebration.
Our school Cherokee High has its own Jr. Air Force elective called AFJROTC.
Sgt Bise explained how the AFJROTC is different than the Air Force, but a step closer.
“JROTC is an elective, and can be taken all four years of HS. We teach two areas of curriculum. First is Aerospace Science: 1) History of Aviation, 2) Science of Flight (how aircraft are designed to fly), 3) Cultural Studies (we look at areas around the globe that our military members deploy to…example, Afghanistan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Europe, Asia, etc). Second, we teach Leadership. JROTC is a cadet led program” said Officer Bise.
Sgt Bise
“I like the fact we do physical exercises as well as learn engineering such as how wings work,” says Cadet Senior Airmen Justin Wehunt.
It’s a really fun program. We have a bunch of activities. We can get into the games for serving such as assisting parking, as well as other benefits–field trips, food, etc for serving,” says Cadet Senior Airmen James Ivey.
“The class community is fun to be around. After the program and graduation, you are set ahead with better rank and benefits, said Cadet Senior Airmen Carson Homan.
According to Sgt Bise knowing the types of goals students have after this class and about how many join the AF afterwards or knowing of any alumni who have even retired or achieved awards/high ranks he says,” Cadets have different goals upon completion of JROTC/HS. On average, we have about 4-5 cadets join the military. Furthermore, we average 1-2 cadets earning a college ROTC scholarship each year. For cadets that complete 3-4 years of JROTC in HS and then enlist in the military can enter at the rank of E-3, which is a significant pay raise over E-1. “
In these classes Sgt Bise says that CHS has 105 cadets in JROTC and that the school must maintain a minimum of 100 cadets each year.
On average, there’s about 21 cadets per class period.
In regards to the the Air Force’s birthday, Sgt Bise also states that we typically don’t do anything special on the Air Force’s birthday. We do sing Happy Birthday and sing the Air Force song. We put more emphasis on the 9-11 Patriot’s Day ceremony and then participate in the local Veterans Day parade.
Sergeant Bise also provided extra info for those interested in joining AFJROTC.
“We do a lot of fun things in AFJROTC. We take a 4-day overnight field trip every March to a military installation and get a first-class experience. This year, we will be going to Kessler AFB and Gulfport NAS, MS. We do an overnight Bataan Death March Memorial Hike on the Appalachian Trail every May. We go to Six Flags in Nov each year. We assist the athletic department with football parking. We conduct the parking for the Cherokee Co. Fair every Sept. This year, we are participating in Raiders Physical Fitness Competition. This is a grueling all-day event against on average, 22-26 Army/Marine Corps JROTC’s. Lastly, we have a championship Riflery Team. We won the AFJROTC National Championship in 2017; we are 2-time GHSA Area 10 Champions; and we have made the GHSA Riflery State Championship the last three years.”
If interested in joining JROTC, please contact your counselor or JROTC instructor in room 502.
In conclusion, according to Holidays Calendar, the Air Force birthday is usually celebrated with official parties and ceremonies for members of the Air force and by thanking an airman for his service or by using the hashtag #AirForceBirthday on social media. Get out there and wish your AWESOME veterans a belated happy birthday and a sincere thank you:).
[Photo Credit: to theitem.com]
THE WARRIOR WORD 