Greater Latrobe senior Brandon Hofecker, was one of a handful of men who went to Ft. Jackson in South Carolina for boot camp.

Brandon wants to pursue a career in the Military. “I went to boot camp to serve and protect my country. It’s also a family tradition, I’m following in the steps of my father and grandfather” said Brandon.

The intense boot camp lasted for a long 10 weeks. Many hard and tiring events took place that the young men will never forget. “While we were there, we got to shoot rocket launchers, machine guns, fire from a humvee, throw hand grenades, and go through a gas chamber,” said Hofecker. Most of these things are only things that are heard about, or seen in video games. For Brandon, they were real.

“I’ll never forget the gas chamber, the Drill Sergeant, and the food.” Brandon was fortunate enough to go through the rough memorable experiences with his fellow soldiers. “Everybody was really close. We were trained and learned how to fight together. When it came down to it, we would die for each other if we had to. In the end it was about the guy beside you and we had each others backs no matter what” said Brandon.

Many of these brave men learned to live by the quote, “You live and you learn.” Everything that they experienced there have taught them valuable lessons they will never forget for the rest of their lives. “Being in the military makes me appreciate each day and it makes me appreciate the little things in life a lot more. Like showering everyday, getting to eat with a fork and a spoon, and getting that extra 10 minutes of sleep in the morning.”

After the boot camp on August 30th, the soldiers parted ways. Many of the soldiers plan to continue their careers in the military; including Brandon. “I plan on going into Active Duty and getting my Jump Wings from Airborne School.”

Some soldiers who experience boot camp have regrets before, during, and after the process. Bandon stated, “I don’t regret a single second. If I could I would do it all over again.”