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And a successful four years they were. It did not take long for Mrs. Dami's son to heighten his expectations within the program:

"By the end of his first month, he told Lieutenant Colonel Gearhart, Sergeant Major Bruno, and us that his goal was to become the Battalion Commander when he was a Senior."

Now-former Battalion Commander Joseph Dami achieved just that.

Mrs. Dami's daughter, Julianna, is currently in her second year as a JROTC cadet. Not wanting to be compared to her brother, she was more reluctant to join. It took some parental influence to convince her otherwise:

"Her father and I encouraged her to take the class," says Mrs. Dami.

Eventually, Julianna agreed to try JROTC on a one-year trial basis:

"'Okay,'" Mrs. Dami recalls her daughter saying, "'But I am not doing any teams or anything extra!'"

Much like her brother, however, Julianna soon found herself hooked with all that JROTC had to offer, deciding in the first month to join both the drill and academic teams.

"I smiled and jumped for joy inside," Mrs. Dami remembers her happiness upon hearing the news, joking about her outward reaction, "I did not show too much enthusiasm on the outside-I didn't want my excitement to have an opposite effect on (Julianna)-after all, she is a teenage girl."

Julianna Dami has since joined the JROTC Color Guard to top off an impressive resume so far in her high school career.

"We have become a JROTC family," Mrs. Dami says.

Looking back at everything JROTC has done for her children, it is understandable why the mother holds the program in such high regard:

"This program has given my children confidence in themselves, which gives them the ability to conquer anything they put their minds to," she says, "It's a great, great program! After all, how many high school classes allow you to have an Army helicopter land on your soccer field and then take every single cadet on a trip around Mount Washington-yes, true story!"

For other parents whose children are about to enter high school, Mrs. Dami has one simple bit of advice:

"Encourage your child to take this class-even if only for a year-you will be amazed!"

Community Support

It is high praise such as this that explains why JROTC has become such an important part of the White Mountains community. Gearhart says that support has helped the program grow significantly:

"We raised about twenty thousand dollars in funds last year," he boasts on the community's behalf. That money supplements the Army's annual contribution of two thousand dollars-which did not come this year due to sequestration-and helps defray the cost of optional trips and the college courses offered to cadets.

Besides money, parents also donate their time. The White Mountains JROTC program has its own official parent group that organizes fundraisers and volunteers to drive the cadets to out-of-town events and competitions.

Future of the Program

JROTC has a bright future in Whitefield, as far as Gearhart is concerned. Besides his goal of growing the program from its current size to one hundred cadets, Colonel Gearhart envisions a new, updated center as part of the proposed expansion of the Career and Technical Education facilities:

"The project would mean our own space, with fitness and marksmanship areas. It would have huge benefits for the program."