BMHS Alum Returns Home for U.S. Marines Reenlistment Ceremony
BMHS Alum Returns Home for U.S. Marines Reenlistment Ceremony
NPS Communications
Brien McMahon High School welcomed back one of its former Naval Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps cadets on Dec. 22 to celebrate her sixth reenlistment into the U.S. Marine Corps as well as her recent promotion.
Master Sergeant Jackeline Calzada chose to come home for her most recent and final reenlistment ceremony, which took place in the BMHS Naval Junior ROTC classroom in front of family, friends, fellow Marines, Brien McMahon students and staff, and several local dignitaries.
Calzada’s former Naval Junior ROTC instructor, retired Lt. Col. Robert Killackey, U.S. Marine Corps, administered her Oath of Enlistment. The reenlistment ceremony is a reaffirmation of a Marine’s commitment to the U.S. Constitution, their Country, and the Corps.
The ceremony is conducted every four years when a Marine’s enlistment contract is completed, and they decide (as does their family) to recommit their lives for another four years. This year, Calzada also celebrated her promotion from Gunnery Sergeant to the senior rank of Master Sergeant.
Calzada has served in the Marine Corps since 2007. She called this last reenlistment “bittersweet” and said it’s been an “honor and a privilege” to serve in the Marine Corps.
“I would not change anything about the time that I have served. I have met amazing people throughout my tour. I’ve had people make an impact on my life, and I’ve been able to make an impact on a lot of people’s lives, and that’s something I will always cherish. I will never take anything for granted,” Calzada said.
She also had a special message for the current class of cadets at Brien McMahon High School, encouraging them to not take the program for granted.
“The Marine Corps has given me so many opportunities that I probably wouldn't have had had I gone down the path that I was initially going. And cadets, this program is one of the things that I probably needed the most,” Calzada said. “Having people that have a sincere and genuine love for what they do is one of the things that caught my attention about the program.”
The goal of the Brien McMahon High School Naval Junior ROTC program is to build “better and more productive citizens” and is not designed for military recruitment. For more information about the NJROTC program, click here.