Dressed in their formal uniforms, cadets gathered with cadre for an evening of fun in the Brown-Lupton University Union Ballroom Friday evening, showing that ROTC is not all work and no play.
Leah Tyler, a senior cadet and part of the planning committee, said it’s a chance for all of the cadets and the cadre to come together in an atmosphere of camaraderie, good fellowship and fun.
“We like to refer to it as ‘mandatory fun,’” Tyler said. “It’s just a chance for everyone in the program to have a good time over dinner.”
Battalion Commander Chris Lamoureux said Lt. Col. Casey Randall was the “president” and ultimately in charge, while “Mr. Vice,” second-year cadet Troy Marshall, kept the program moving and provided entertainment for the president.
The entertainment took place during the dinner portion of the evening.
“If the Rules of the Mess, dining rules which are oddly specific and easily forgettable, are broken, your fate lays in the hands of Mr. Vice and be ready for a trip to the grog, to sing a song or to do a dance,” said Morgan Fleming, first-year cadet and strategic communications major. “The grog was traumatizing.”
“The grog is a poor tasting concoction in which every ingredient is symbolic of all the branches of the army,” senior psychology major Lamoureux said. “Mine is dirt to represent armor and cavalry so crushed Oreos were added.”
Mr. Vice picked fun at all the cadets through dinner, and the juniors paid tribute to the seniors through a satirical skit.
“Mr. Vice did a great job incorporating all the classes and not just specifically targeting the seniors,” said Platoon Leader Rebekah Marquardt, a senior nursing major. “The skit roasted the seniors in a tasteful manner that added humor and entertainment to the night.”
The night concluded with a slideshow of the past four years for the seniors who are leaving in the spring.
“It’s a celebration of the semester and everything we’ve accomplished,” said Supply and Logistics Officer Joseph Medina, a senior biology major.
Overall, the evening accomplished its purpose of building camaraderie with fun.
“I really enjoyed the evening as it increased esprit de corps (spirit of the corps),” said cadet Aidan Yamada, a sophomore political science major. “It’s always good when you get a chance to bond with your brothers and sisters.”
