The Viking Bethel Church Experience

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Sunday, November 18th, 2018 the Viking battalion had an event at the well known
Bethel Baptist Institutional Church. The event took place at 6:45 a.m. and at that time, all
cadets arrived in Class A uniforms well dressed and ready to show the Bethel church
what the Viking battalion had to offer. The Viking cadets stayed for two services and
while the Color Guard presented both the U.S. and The State Flag as cadets and people
of the ministry paid their respects to our military in favor for the veterans holiday. The
service spoke an important message and reached the lives of the people apart of the
ministry and the cadets that were present. The event itself was spiritually fulfilling and it
was an experience to the community how young leaders can impact the society by
paying appreciations to the soldiers that dedicated their lives to our nation, the people,
and the influence they would have for the many young lives to come.

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The Vikings JROTC Army Corps of Cadets were proud to be a part of such an event
and glad to give tribute for such a historic occasion. This was the first time Bethel
Baptist Ministry had, had an event such as this and we were proud that our fourteen
cadets were able to attend. By making an unforgettable impression that shows the
intelligence of the battalion and the unique approach that we use. That approach will
influence the community and those that grasp the concept and the importance of the
event. One of the Army Corps of cadets known as the chaplain ( Jada Simmons) a
12th-grade cadet who was also present at the event and took heed to the message that

the preacher had given and taken back a powerful message to the rest of the battalion
that did not attend.

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The fourteen cadets stood at the entrance to help people out of their cars and also
stood as greeters to serve a warm welcome and a salute to the congregation. In the
middle of the service, the people of the congregation shared what branch of the military
they dedicated their lives to and those branches were, Navy: Air Force, Marines,
National Guard, and of course the U.S. Army. It was a learning experience for both
cadets and the people of worship for them (people of the ministry) how youthful leaders
can still respect and dedicate their time to self-less matters. A learning experience for the
cadets to show that people from all walks of life can come together and participate in an
illuminating affair with such pride and rejoice amongst one another. The event itself was
a lesson and the people around it had great meaning that made the event very
important.

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After the church service came to a close, we all as a community had plenty to reflect
upon. We all had a lot to be grateful for due to thanksgivings approach. The smiles and
the applause that the people of the ministry and the gratitude they gave us. We shared
and we are continuing to make a more meaningful legacy. JROTC has made youthful
students into resourceful leaders in the time of the program. The salutes for the United
States flag as well to further show our appreciation to the soldiers that have paved the
way. We were very pleased to show the variety of our appreciation to the United States
Military and to the Bethel Institutional Church and personally as cadet, this was one of
the best experiences we’ve had spiritually it was a clear message and it was an impact

and the words Bishop McKissick spoke was very meaningful and every cadet that left
was reshaped or influenced some way emotionally and physically.

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The Cadets that attended the event names were 2nd lieutenant Brown, 1st Sergeant
Dyer, Cadet Sanders, Cadet Butler, Captain Reese (Color Guard Commander),
Major Owens, 2nd Lieutenant Matthews, Cadet West, Sergeant Barber, Cadet Pernell,
1st Lieutenant Jordan, Sergeant Simmons (Chaplain), Major Henderson (Executive
Officer), Cadet Mack and Major Wilson. These are the Cadets and their Ranks that
attended the ceremony served as greeters and color guard for the place of worship. The
Bethel Church is the city's oldest Baptist congregation with more than 12,000 members.
Location of address: 215 Bethel Baptist St, Jacksonville, FL 32202