The Army’s top brass swore in 75 new recruits at Harvard
Karoline Bandiera stood at attention in a pew of Memorial Church at Harvard University, her heart pounding and her right hand shaking a little as she held it up in the air.
Just a few minutes before, General Mark Milley, chief of staff of the U.S. Army, told the 75 recruits standing in the pews before him that they were about to become part of the Army family. The oath he would soon lead them through would make it official.
“Repeat after me,’’ Milley said to Bandiera and the other recruits, who came from all over New England for the ceremony Tuesday afternoon.
“I, state your full name,’’ he said.
The soon-to-be soldiers boldly stated “I’’ in unison before saying their names, the syllables echoing throughout the otherwise silent church.
The Army’s most senior general led them through the rest of the brief oath, which concludes with “so help me God.’’
“So help me, God,’’ Bandiera repeated.
Just like that, she was officially a member of the U.S. Army.
The oath is always led by a senior officer, but Bandiera said having Milley preside over the ceremony was a special honor for the new soldiers. She said she was both anxious and honored to be sworn in by Milley.
“It’s a big deal for all of us,’’ she said. “I was so nervous because this makes it official, you know? And then we got to meet him and shake his hand and talk to him.’’
After the oath, Milley asked that each of the soldiers, who are members of the New England Recruiting Battalion, come up the aisle of the church to shake his hand. He asked each where they were from. About 10 of them, Bandiera included, said Brazil.
Even though he’s conducted oath-of-enlistment ceremonies before, Milley said this one was particularly memorable for him because of the number of people from other countries and the fact that the ceremony took place in the church, instead of at an army base or recruitment office.
“I think we saw 8, 9 or 10 from Brazil,’’ he said. “Several from Korea, two from China, Jamaica, there’s quite a few countries represented. Most of New England, I didn’t hear a Vermont or catch a Connecticut, but there could’ve been. Another thing that’s unique is we did the enlistment here at Memorial Chapel, and I enjoyed it because I’m from the local area.’’
General Mark A. Milley speaks to the new recruits during the ceremony at Memorial Church Tuesday.
Milley, who began duty as the 39th Chief of Staff of the Army in August 2015, is a native of Winchester, Massachusetts (yes, he’s a Boston sports fan), and said he has family who still lives in the Boston area. Because of that, he said he always enjoys coming back to the place he grew up.
But he also makes an effort because he said the Army as a whole, unlike other branches of the military, is underrepresented by recruits from the Northeast. Part of the reason, he said, is because most of the Army bases are in the Midwest, South and Mountain areas of the U.S., which means people in those areas are more familiar with the Army branch of military service.
He also hypothesized that Northeast enrollment might be down because of economic reasons, or educational. Because there are many colleges in the Northeast, he said fewer students join the Army right out of high school.
“I want to do more outreach on both coasts, but particularly in the Northeast’’ he said. “Roles are probably going to increase in higher tech and require people with higher educations. This is a high density education area, there’s a lot of talent that I think we need to tap into more perhaps then we already do.’’
Milley is an Ivy League graduate, himself, and began his Army career after graduating from Princeton University in 1980. In his 35-year career, he has held what another officer said were “too many positions’’ and has received “too many honors’’ to name in the short ceremony.
Still, he remembers the apprehension that came before taking the oath of enlistment. As he shook the new soldiers hands, he joked about their sweaty palms and wide eyes. This caused many of them to blush from their cheeks to the edges of their closely cropped hair.
“You’re always a bit apprehensive, I suppose, because there’s anxiety over the unknown,’’ he said. “I think that’s a normal human reaction. But they’re going right from high school and coming into the military, which is a significant social and cultural change. There’s a little bit of anxiety. They’re excited, though.’’
Karoline Bandiera with her mom and sister after the ceremony.
After the ceremony ended, Bandiera met her family and friends in the lobby, where they took pictures of her with the coin Milley gave the soldiers that said “Awarded by the Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army’’ and her certificate of enlistment.
“My family is nervous,’’ she said. “But they’re really proud of me, too.’’
In a few weeks, she’ll go to Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri, where she’ll begin basic training. Bandiera admitted that she’s a little apprehensive. But she knows she’s supported, both by her family at home, and her new Army family.
“I’m ready,’’ she said.
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