Young Marines Awarded Jimmie Trimble Scholarships by the American Veterans Center
Washington D.C. (PRWEB) November 14, 2016 -- Young Marines SSgt Cassandra Roaché, 17, of Troy, Ohio, and Young Marines MSgt Dev R. Patel, 17, of Fredericksburg, Virginia, were selected by the Young Marines, a national youth organization, to receive Jimmie Trimble Scholarships from the American Veterans Center. The honors were bestowed at a banquet on Saturday, November 5, at the American Veterans Center in Washington D.C.
Besides a monetary prize, both scholarship winners will travel to Guam and Iwo Jima next spring for the Reunion of Honor which, in 2017, is the 72nd anniversary of the battles. They will join eight other youth members of the Young Marines as they escort WWII veterans back to the island of Iwo Jima which is open just one day a year.
The award is presented annually to one male and one female Young Marine who exemplify the fine qualities of James "Jimmie" Trimble III. Trimble was a star athlete who passed up the opportunity to play professional baseball to first serve his country in the Marines. At age 19, he died on March 1, 1945, at Iwo Jima.
"Jimmie Trimble epitomized the fighting spirit of that generation of Americans,” said Bill Davis, national executive director and CEO of the Young Marines. “He gave up a life of professional baseball because he was called upon to serve his country. We are grateful to the American Veterans Center for keeping his spirit alive and for allowing the Young Marines to play a key role in that effort.”
StaffSgt Cassandra Roaché
A resident of Troy, Ohio, Roaché is a member of the Miami Valley Young Marines unit located in Huber Heights, Ohio; unit commander is Keagan Miller.
Roaché joined the Young Marines in 7th grade at age 13.
“The Young Marines has helped me develop discipline, professionalism and the qualities of a good leader," she said. "I have made friends that I otherwise could not have met. The Young Marines is a well of opportunity from which I have pulled many pails of water."
Roaché is a senior at Troy High School in Troy, Ohio. She is a member of the National Honor Society and has been on the Principal's List all four years of high school. She is involved in many musical activities such as marching band, pep band, wind ensemble, musical pit orchestra and the Dayton Philharmonic Youth Orchestra. In addition, she has received the Scholar Athlete Award for cross country, swimming and track and field.
She plans to major in music performance with the bassoon as her primary instrument. She will apply to Bowling Green State University or Wright State University, both in Ohio.
Her dream is to audition for the President's Own Marine Band following her post graduate studies.
YM MSgt Dev R. Patel
Young Marines Master Sergeant Dev R. Patel belongs to the Lance Corporal Caleb Powers Young Marines unit based in Fredericksburg, Virginia, under the command of Stan Kennedy.
"This scholarship is the culmination of all my efforts in the past six years," Patel said. "I'm very happy to embark on this final endeavor."
Patel joined the Young Marines in 6th grade at age 11. He most values the friendships he’s made in the program.
“The Young Marines has given me some of my best friends," Patel said. "I have traveled the country with these comrades and attended leadership school with them. These experiences are one of a kind, and only the Young Marines can create these emotional bonds."
Patel is a senior at Massaponax High School in Spotsylvania, Virginia. He received the Award for High Honors from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth, the Academic Excellence Award (several times) in the Commonwealth Governor's School, and the regional top score in the National Latin Exam. In addition he is a first degree Black Belt in Martial Arts.
He plans to pursue a medical career in the military.
About the Young Marines
The Young Marines is a national non-profit 501c(3) youth education and service program for boys and girls, age eight through the completion of high school. The Young Marines promotes the mental, moral and physical development of its members. The program focuses on teaching the values of leadership, teamwork and self-discipline, so its members can live and promote a healthy, drug-free lifestyle.
Since the Young Marines' humble beginnings in 1959 with one unit and a handful of boys, the organization has grown to 281 units with 9,600 youth and 2,400 adult volunteers in 40 states, the District of Columbia and Okinawa with affiliates in other countries.
For more information, visit the official website at: http://www.YoungMarines.com.
Andy Richardson, Ginny Richardson Public Relations, http://www.gr-pr.com, +1 (630) 789-8899, [email protected]
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