By NEAL WAGNER / Managing Editor

ALABASTER – The first instructor of Thompson High School’s Air Force Junior ROTC program was awestruck as he stood in the large rotunda at the front of the new THS building on the evening of Oct. 9.

“All I can say is wow. You probably think I’m talking about this building, but I’m talking about the cadets,” said retired Col. George Allen. “I’ve been gone since 2007, I want you to know that I’ve missed you every day, every week. The amazing thing is how fast 25 years has gone.”

Every weekday for 14 years, Allen drove from his home in Montgomery to THS to lead the Junior ROTC program.”

“From my parking spot here to my place in Montgomery was 75 miles, and it was worth every mile,” Allen said.

Allen was one of multiple former THS Junior ROTC instructors to return to the school on Oct. 9, as the unit celebrated its 25^th anniversary at THS. The ceremony packed the THS rotunda with parents and former cadets as current cadets on two separate floors stood at attention around them.

“After 30 years in the military, I didn’t think I’d find something as rewarding, but I learned a lot,” said former unit instructor retired Col. Eldon Woodie. “Many of those young men and women I was blessed to work with are right now contributing to society. They graduated school, learned trades or joined the military.”

The unit has had a significant impact on the city since it was founded in 1993, as it regularly volunteers in the community, holds fundraiser events and has trained generations of student leaders.

“Air Force Junior ROTC teaches cadets important life skills hopefully in a fun and challenging way so they can be better citizens and better people,” said current Junior ROTC instructor retired Lt. Col. Douglas Crabb. “During my six years with the Thompson Junior ROTC program, I’ve seen cadets learn and grow and learn important life skills all while having fun. During my tenure, I’ve seen individuals excel and grow to levels they may not have thought possible when they started the program.”

One of the unit’s most well-known events is its annual Veterans Day ceremony typically held in the THS gym.

“When we started that in 1993, we did it in the lobby of the high school, and a group about this size would show up. It was just a small, informal, family kind of celebration for Veterans Day. And then Sept. 11, 2001 came,” Allen said. “A few days later, some of the kids came to the classroom and said ‘after 9/11, we think we ought to have Veterans Day for the whole school.’ The whole student body was there that day, and the band and the choir just made the walls shiver. The cadets did that, and I’m glad that tradition is still going on today.”

Those in attendance heaped praise on retired Sgt. Dee Terrell, who helped lead the program for 17 years, and praised the school and community for supporting the program over the years.

“A unit like this doesn’t survive without support, and a lot of units have folded since this one started,” Allen said. “If you don’t have school support, if you don’t have community support, if you don’t have parent support and you don’t have staff support at that school, you will not survive. It’s telling that we’re still here.”

THS principal Dr. Wesley Hester said the school is honored to support the Junior ROTC program because of the impact it has on the student body.

“The JROTC at Thompson High School, there’s not another organization that can top the impact they have on the school and culture on a day-to-day basis,” Hester said. “These young men and women are definitely the epitome of what leadership is all about.”