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One special military person I love dearly is my baby brother. We have about fifteen years in between us. Throughout his high School years he was involved in the JROTC (Junior Reserves Officers’ Training Corp) program which groomed him for the military. Being in the JROTC you learn valuable skills in competitiveness, discipline, and leadership among many others. The decision to participate in JROTC throughout High School instantly allowed my brother to rank higher when he decided to pursue a military career. My brother also has a passion for Electronics and loved his electronics class in high school which gave him direction in what type of career he wanted to pursue in the military. When my brother reached his senior year of High School he enlisted in the U.S. Army before graduation.

After High School graduation my brother went off to Basic Training in Ft. Benning,GA and I was able to attend his graduation. It was a very emotional time for me because I was torn with his decision to enlist in the military as he’s my moms only son and one of the babies amongst my siblings. I also think I was just being a selfish big sister, however it took some time for me to realize that my brothers calling served a higher power and went far beyond the reach of my selfishness. The genuine act of helping our nation and giving up his civilian life and freedoms as he knows it to serve this country is a valiant act. I cried when it was time to say see you later, I prefer that to good-byes. At that point in time I had no clue when I was going to see my baby brother again, where he’d be stationed, if he’d be deployed etc. We all know these things can change at any moment. My brother went on to Ft. Hauchuca, AZ for Technical Training in Unmanned Aircraft Systems Maintenance. He’s currently stationed at Ft. Stewart in GA and I hope to see him soon, he’s definitely one of my heroes!

I would love to honor all of the people serving for our country. I have relatives and friends dear to me serving in different branches of the military. Some have been deployed and returned and some will be deployed in the future. I have to thank the USO (United Service Organizations) for being there for troops and their families. There are USO centers all over the world taking donations and raising funds, with the mission is to provide a home away from home for our troops and keep them connected to their families. USO has partnered with Kroger for it’s 70th anniversary and is on a mission to honor our heroes. You can participate by heading over to Honoring Our Heroes and leaving a message for a special soldier, making a donation or helping in your local community. Be one of the first 50,000 to shake hands with a soldier and get a special offer on one of your favorite P&G brands at Kroger. Head on over, it only takes a second!