Future Soldier Cynthia Escalera

Escalera, Cynthia a photo by Official Army Future Soldier Center on Flickr.

My name is Cynthia Escalera. I'm 20 years old and I'm a Future Soldier in the United States Army. It's not easy to decide to join any branch of the military. It takes strength to even take that step. But I woke up one day realizing I had no direction, no money, and no will to continue living. I used to be such a vibrant individual. And just like many of you, I thought I had all of the time in the world to become an adult. Yet there I was, in debt and with no idea where I would live.

My friend had just come back home from Air Force boot camp and she seemed so happy. I wanted to be that happy again. So I started talking to recruiters from every branch. But the Army stood out. They cared about what I wanted and knew what it would take to get me there. I wasn't just a number to them. I was a Future Soldier...a young woman who could carry on serving the country when it was my turn.
It was all a blur. Between meeting the recruiters and MEPS to even swearing in (which was the proudest day of my existence). Now I'm just waiting to ship out to Ft. Leonard Wood, MO in February.

I'm trying to enjoy my civilian life while I'm still here but I'm just getting into the balance of preparing for Basic Training as well. I've already made friends who will train with me and I feel like a family already. The Army has given me security and I would whole-heartily give any individual a thumbs-up if they joined as well. Joining the Army was the best decision I ever made for myself. I can finally be proud of myself.

Pvt. Escalera
42A Future Soldier
US Army

Future Soldier Alberto Feliciano

Feliciano, Alberto a photo by Official Army Future Soldier Center on Flickr.

Hi my name is Alberto L. Feliciano and I’m very proud to say I’m a Future Soldier. My story began when I saw my father put on his uniform and work in something he loved. My father was an Airborne Ranger. I always wanted to be a Soldier and at the age of 16 I quit playing baseball to become a Civil Air Patrol Cadet. When I started my senior year of high school I talked with my father about enlistment and his said, “If you want to enlist go for it, but only when you finish college.’’

Some months later he went to Iraq. On Jan 13, 2006 my mom received the call you never want to receive - my father was hit by two cars bombs and was in a plane to Germany for treatment in Ramstein AB. I forgot all about wanting to enlist and decided to go to college.

In my third year of college, I saw a table with cadets of the Air Force ROTC and started thinking and decided that I really wanted to be a Soldier so I talked with a TSgt and his said, ‘’You are too fat for the program.’’ I was over 250 lbs at that time so the TSgt said when you drop that weight to 185 lbs come and meet with me. Six months later I went to the TSgt office and he weighed me and didn’t believe that I dropped my weight to 184 lbs. I signed the initial contract and started the next semester. My plan was to finish my last two years of my bachelor’s and the other two years for my master’s.

Almost one year later the Air Force had some cuts of personnel and one day the Commander said AFROTC have 5,100 cadets and only needs 2,500 so all the cadets with plans to do a master’s have one choice: to extend the bachelor’s degree or go to Army ROTC; so, at this time I was only at 9 classes to finish. Obviously my time in AFROTC was done.

I decided to finish my bachelor’s degree and enlist in the Army. One month after my graduation (my bachelor’s degree is in computers and network). I met my recruiter and the rest is history. I chose to follow the steps of my father and enlist in the Army. Some people doubt me and tell me I can’t be a Soldier, but after some hard work and motivation I’m now waiting for my day to ship to BCT. If you want something just do it HOOAH!!!

SPC Feliciano

Future Soldier Kelsey Evan

Evan, Kelsey a photo by Official Army Future Soldier Center on Flickr.

Hi my name is Kelsey Evans and this is my journey to enlistment. I went to college in the fall of 2005 knowing what I wanted to do. I wanted to become a Photojournalist and play lacrosse in college. I think at some point during my junior year of college, when I was finally taking actual photojournalism classes, I realized that I didn’t really have the passion for it that I thought I would. So instead of wasting more money and switching majors I stuck it out, finished my lacrosse career, which was my real passion and got my degree.

When I graduated college I also thought I knew what I wanted to do and became a part-time college lacrosse coach and worked full-time in retail to supplement my income. I did love coaching those girls, but the office work side of it was not for me. All I knew was that I loved being part of a team, I loved working hard and being hands on with my job.

It had been 1 ½ years since I was a college lacrosse goalie so I was out of shape. I decided in January of this year to start doing Crossfit. I headed to my local box (their term for gym) and took beginner’s classes for a month until I was able to do the real classes. I spent that time around ex-military and current military personnel who loved the Armed Forces and their jobs. I got the opportunity to work out with them and get to know them and it really shifted my perspective on what I wanted to do with my life.

On February 28th of this year I walked into a recruiter’s office and told him I wanted to join the Army and go to OCS and so began the LONG journey of me joining the Army. I had to lose weight so I continued doing Crossfit and started running and started doing the Paleo diet strictly. I lost 9 pounds of fat in about 3 months and went to MEPS on May 18th and 19th for my ASVAB and medical exam. Unfortunately for me the Officer Review Board (interview before three officers) was canceled in June. I had to wait until mid-July. I was nervous out of my mind for the hours they had us waiting to go before the board, which is funny now because it went so well and it was pretty laid back and kind of fun. All three of the officers highly recommended me as an Officer Candidate, which means that I could become a Reserve Officer Candidate if I wanted. I wanted active so they sent all my paperwork and their recommendations to the Paper Review Board. They took 31 of 85 candidates that month I believe. I wasn’t accepted as an Active Duty Officer Candidate.

I already knew that I wanted active more than I wanted officer and had plenty of time leading up to this day to make my decision. The day I got turned down I went to my recruiter’s office in late July and picked my MOS of 35M Human Intelligence Collector. On August 4th I FINALLY enlisted in the Army. I got what I wanted and the 7-month wait in the DEP began. I’ve decided since then that I want to try to become a HUMINT Warrant Officer anyways knowing how I love hands on work.

I went from not being able to do one military pushup in March to being able to do 50 in 2 minutes by May. I went from not being able to do more than 30 sit-ups without being exhausted and completely slowing down to doing 76 in 2 minutes now. And my running…When I was a freshman in high school and decided to play lacrosse I couldn’t jog a lap around the track because of exhaustion and lack of mental toughness. By my senior year of high school I could run a mile in 8:04. I now run a mile in 7:26 and my 2 miles is 16:05.

If you want something and are willing to work for it, you will get it. There is no question. It just may take a long time. Next step is Basic Training in February. I know it will be hard, but I’ll handle that too. I can’t wait to be SPC Evans.

Future Soldier John DeLima

DeLima, John a photo by Official Army Future Soldier Center on Flickr.

School just wasn't for me. I wanted to work- I had no problem clocking in, doing my time, and clocking out. I tried a few semesters at community college and nothing clicked for me. I ended up getting a desk job and after three years the monotony got to me.

My cousin SFC Harris is the only other person in my family that is in the service and is currently doing her recruiting duty. She put my one buddy SPC Molloy into the service and he's currently a Ranger now. Between the two of them, seeing the transformation of a civilian to a Soldier is just inspiring. I had enough of civilian life and I told my cousin I wanted to be better. I wanted to do something honorable and I wanted to overcome a real challenge. I didn't want to be a loser anymore. The Army was the only path to take.

I contacted a recruiter on a Friday, by the following Friday- I signed my contract. It was the best day of my life thus far. Every single day that passes as a Future Soldier opens my eyes to more of what the Army has to offer me and I can't believe the chance I have now. I'm leaving in April to become a 35F and I couldn't be more excited.

Future Soldier Judy Rodriguez

Rodriguez, Judy a photo by Official Army Future Soldier Center on Flickr.

My name is Judy Rodriguez. I'm 29 years old and I'm so proud to say that I'm a Future Soldier. I recently enlisted in the U.S Army!!! Yes, some would say a little older than most people usually join the military, but late is better than never. The Reality of life is that you don't always get what you want, when you want it. This is something I’ve always liked and been interested in. I actually became an adult way ahead of my time!

Let's see where do I begin; well I was married for ten years. I was 16 yrs old when I started dating my ex-husband and got married at 17 yrs old. So, I obviously had to learn what it was to be an adult, wife and all the responsibilities that come with those titles at a very young age. It was hard, at times I had to work full time “plus hours” at times. While going to school full time, maintaining a husband and household! I guess it didn't go so bad since I did get my high school diploma, then my associates degree, and kept my job and later moved to my career in the medical field.

My desire has always been to keep pushing myself and accomplish everything I’ve wanted to do. Once I became single, I had to find myself again and become my own person. It had been so long since I only had myself to worry about and consider. My once upon a time thought and desire to join the military came back. I’ve been fortunate enough to have two cousins, friends and my boyfriend who are military veterans (different branches) to guide me through this process. Honestly, when I started considering the military once again, as the questions aroused, such as “Am I too old already?," "Would I be able to keep up with the young kids? Just things of that nature. Then my personality kicked in. LOL HELLO!!!!! Judy, of course you can!!!. You can do everything and anything you put your mind to! If you want “IT” that much you will succeed (where there‘s a “WILL“ there‘s a “WAY“).

I’ve accomplished a lot considering everything I’ve been through in life. I’ve succeeded and accomplished everything I’ve set out to do thus far. “This is the opportunity of a lifetime, something you've always wanted to be a part of. You’ll be part of a team, ‘a Warrior‘!! (something I consider I'm definitely good at). I’ll be part of something greater, bigger than ourselves, serve our country, and defend our freedom.

At that point I spoke to my man and my family and made “THE” call to my recruiting office. I had a lot of support and great advice. My man helped a lot, him being former military (Navy). I’m very proud and happy to have someone who knows and understands the military life. He has helped me with the training process such as: Ranks, Saluting, Marching, ABC's, etc., as well as the overall transitioning from civilian before BCT - and may I add he’s learned too! Since I’m Army and he’s former Navy he had to learn the Army ranks and remember to say “MOS” to me instead of “Rate”, which I still find it funny... he and my family have been my major support team.

My sister has been amazing as well, she’s very active with the Future Soldiers Family page on Facebook. She’s learning military abbreviations to be able to understand the military lingo that I‘ll be speaking once I’ve finished BCT. I am extremely excited, motivated, and ready to embark my new life in the military. I’m happy to be able to show my niece and younger brothers, who are very important to me, a great example and maybe even be their role model. To show them it's never too late to go after what you want in life no matter what life throws at you, even when the opportunity presents itself a little later than expected. Fort Jackson better get ready, Here I come!!!!!! ;-)