James Walk of Paso Robles graduated from The Citadel in South Carolina last weekend. THE (CHARLESTON) POST AND COURIER PHOTO BY MELISSA HANELINE
Like many college graduates, James Walk of Paso Robles has fond memories of making new friends and living away from home for the first time.
But Walk, who graduated from The Military College of South Carolina — also known as The Citadel — last weekend, also has memories of grueling physical training designed to challenge future U. S. military officers.
In addition to his degree in business administration, Walk has been commissioned as an ensign in the U. S. Navy. He’s waiting for orders to report to his first ship.
The 21-year-old son of William and Patty Walk of Paso Robles graduated from Paso Robles High School, where he played baseball and basketball, in 2004.
He decided to pursue a Naval ROTC scholarship at The Citadel in Charleston, S. C., and follow in the footsteps of his two grandfathers, who served in World War II.
“I’m more of a laid-back guy,
and I didn’t want to be a Marine or in the Army. But I wanted to serve my country,” Walk said.
He described his time at the military college as “one of the best and worst experiences of my life.”
Citadel freshmen are put through physical exercises such as long-distance runs that test their mental, emotional and physical strength, Walk said.
“I didn’t know I could push myself that far. I learned my limits,” he said.
A typical day involved rising at 5:30 a. m. for a run and calisthenics before breakfast, then classes and more physical training in the afternoon.
His class comprises 448 cadets, according to the college’s Web site. Of the class, 88 have been commissioned as U. S. Army officers and 11 other cadets have joined the Navy. There are seven active-duty Naval graduates.
Walk said he supports the war in Iraq and hopes that he will be on a ship that goes there at some point. He hasn’t decided whether he will serve more than his four-year ROTC commitment.
“I’m 100 percent behind the president; we need to take care of terrorism. It’s going to be a long war and take a while, but I’m happy to serve our country and do our best to defeat the terrorists,” he said.
He is hoping for placement on an amphibious assault ship that will transport Marines and conduct flight operations. His home port will be Norfolk, Va.
A photograph of him receiving his diploma from The Citadel was prominently featured in the local newspaper after graduation last weekend.
McClatchy Interactive is pleased to be able to offer its users the opportunity to make comments and hold conversations online. However, the interactive nature of the internet makes it impracticable for our staff to monitor each and every posting.
Since The SanLuisObispo.com does not control user submitted statements, we cannot promise that readers will not occasionally find offensive or inaccurate comments posted on our website. In addition, we remind anyone interested in making an online comment that responsibility for statements posted lies with the person submitting the comment, not SanLuisObispo.com.
If you find a comment offensive, clicking on the exclamation icon will flag the comment for review by the administrators, we are counting on the good judgment of all our readers to help us.
Print
E-Mail
