14th Public Affairs Detachment

Story by Spc. Opal Vaughn

One by one, 16 Soldiers with 25th Brigade Support Battalion are squirted with water.

As rites of passage, each Soldier is washed by their chain of command – a tradition within the Non-commissioned Officer Corps, during a ceremony held at Forward Operating Base Warhorse in the Diyala province of Iraq, March 6.

Sgts. Krystal Lumpkin, Phillip Romero, Jeremiah Thompson, Cantrelle Dansby, David Plummer and Nicole Krajewski with Headquarters Headquarters Company; Sgt. Brandon Hollins with Distribution Company; Sgts. Scotty Case, Ian Jackson, Kandra Scott, Larry Vargas, Jarrod Jackson with Forward Maintenance Company; Sgts. Virginia Endo, Evette Lee-Stewart, Patricia Rogers and Michael Venturino with Brigade Support Medical Company, are all inducted into the NCO Corps by their chain of command as they complete the washing of their new sergeants rank.

The ceremony was not just for the inductees and their sponsors but for the junior enlisted Soldiers as well.

"Reciting the "Soldiers Request" meant a lot to me," said Pvt. 1st Class Marcia Martinez, supply, DC, reciting the "Soldiers Request," along with two other junior enlisted Soldiers.

"It means having my NCO or my higher enlisted sergeants train me to do better for myself – the "Soldiers Request" says train me to be self sufficient so that I may lead the way – it's really self explanatory, but it allows me to do better for myself with their support and their guidance," Martinez stated. "The ceremony was a good experience for me and for my peers. The more I rehearsed, the more it had meaning and it caused me to say the "Soldiers Request" during the ceremony with more meaning."

Instilling good values and continuing in the traditions of the NCO Corps are important, especially in leading and training junior Soldiers, stated Dill.

"It was a really good ceremony. I'm really glad that they went back to the old school ways which allows our new Soldiers to see it," said Staff Sgt. April Dill, NCO in charge, DC. "This ceremony teaches Soldiers the values of the "NCO Creed" – to know it, live it, train and lead Soldiers by it. It also allows our junior level Soldiers the opportunity to see how NCOs get to the next level."

But NCOs in military force history is not just an American Idea, Sgt. 1st Class Cherrie Kennedy, 25th BSB, said. NCO history started long before this nation was even formed.

"The origin of the NCO in military forces is said to be traced back to the Roman armies and their system of clerks," Kennedy stated. "It's no wonder that Rudyard Kipling eventually wrote, "The backbone of the Army is the non-commissioned officer," in his poem "The Heathen."" Regardless of where, when, under what circumstances or by whom it is used, leadership boils down to getting Soldiers to willfully carry out orders and accomplish the mission. The more expert the leader, the more likely Soldiers are to follow. NCOs must be able to motivate and inspire Soldiers to carry out missions for the greater good of the Army."

Associated Images

Control Panel