Student races toward future success

Photo By Cpl. Naomi May | Chris Escamilla picks up trash with other high school students as part of a community service project at a beach during the 2017 Summer Leadership and Character Development Academy (SLCDA) aboard Quantico, Va., July 21. The SLCDA is a six-day-long program focused on teaching high school students skills critical to future success, such as honor, courage and commitment. Escamilla travelled approximately 7,000 miles overseas from Naval Air Facility, Atsugi, Japan, to Quantico to attend the event, and is a student at Zama American High School.  

QUANTICO, VA, UNITED STATES

07.20.2017

Story by Pfc. Naomi May 

Marine Corps Recruiting Command           

It was one of the last cross country practices of the season, and the coach had the team do sprints up and down a hill for practice. His teammates were doing well until a runner began falling behind. Chris Escamilla, in effort to keep the team together, stayed with the slower runner and continued to motivate him throughout the practice while boosting the morale of his team.
Escamilla, a 16-year-old student at Zama American High School on Naval Air Facility Atsugi, Japan, where his father is currently serving, learned invaluable lessons during cross country that contributed to his leadership style and will one day help him to become a U.S. Marine.
To better understand leadership for the benefit of his team, Escamilla traveled nearly 7,000 miles overseas to Quantico, Virginia, to attend the Summer Leadership and Character Development Academy (SLCDA), a six-day-long program designed to expose high school students to Marine Corps culture and teach them skills critical to future success, such as honor, courage and commitment.

Escamilla recalls struggles from his earlier athletic career, like in the first few days of the cross country season in his freshman year, when his team went on a 10-mile trail run. Humid, unprepared and mentally exhausted through the run, he found himself struggling internally, trying to convince himself to stop and began questioning his own capabilities.
“Having my peers motivate me in that moment made me want to motivate them in return for all that they had done for me,” Escamilla explained.
He expressed that the Marine Corps emphasizes many of the same valuable lessons as he has learned in cross country.
“Sometimes you have to embrace the struggle of what you’re going up against,” he suggested.
He also said he values having fun, even when he is struggling. He believes it is important to experience joy — and joy, he believes, leads to success.
Escamilla expressed that participating in a high school sport and attending the SLCDA prepares him to achieve his life goal to attend the United States Naval Academy and becoming a Marine officer.
During his time at the SLCDA, he and his peers were introduced to the program by Officer Candidates School sergeant instructors, attended character development classes, negotiated obstacle courses, participated in leadership exercises and visited the National Mall and Memorial Parks and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
“The SLCDA is valuable to all the students if they join the military or not,” emphasized Master Gunnery Sgt. Abiud Montes, the battalion sergeant major for the SLCDA. “This academy is about character development. The value they get from great speakers during the week and different challenges will only create more value to their tool box of knowledge.”

• Date Taken: 07.20.2017
• Date Posted: 07.28.2017 13:24
• Story ID: 242962
• Location: QUANTICO, VA, US