Project Appleseed was pleased to once again welcome the Young Marines (https://members.youngmarines.org/unit/lapeercounty/page) to Lapeer County Sportsmen's Club (https://www.lapeersportsmens.org/) for a weekend of Marksmanship and History. The marines arrived around 6pm on Friday and quickly established their encampment on the lawn. The weather was colder than expected for early May, and the marines had to endure near-freezing temps and some brief sleet on Friday night, but they persevered.
Saturday remained chilly, but the sun was out as we circled up at the flag pole and then made our way down to the range. After our safety briefing we jumped right into our marksmanship instruction and kept a solid pace all through the day. The marines were attentive as we shared the stories of April 19, 1775, and remained engaged throughout the course of fire. We closed out our day with the Parker's Revenge fun shoot - congratulations to Flowers and Welch for running away with the high score!
The temperature picked up a bit on Sunday (and so did the wind) and we made the most of our limited time for the day. We were able to shoot an AQT before breaking for lunch, where we heard about the brave initiative taken by Samuel Whittemore and David Lamson as the redcoats were making their desperate retreat from Concord.
After lunch, the venerable Roundballer joined us on the range to give everyone some hands-on experience with the Brown Bess musket. Thank you Roundballer for your commitment to preserving this revolutionary war history for the next generation of Americans.
As was always the case with the Young Marines, we had an interesting mix of ages and experience levels on the firing line. Nearly half of our roster was attending Appleseed for the first time, and some of them were handling a rifle for the very first time. Other marines have been in the program for several years, and were attending their second or third Appleseed. Some of them are now very close to achieving a Rifleman score on the AQT, and we encourage them to get out for a public event if they can. I hope I'm there when they earn those patches!
It is an honor to partner with a fellow non-profit organization who shares our passion for preserving American tradition and integrity for the next generation. James Madison said "The advancement and diffusion of knowledge is the only true guardian of our Liberty", and I'm grateful to all of the volunteers from both orgs who dedicated their time and energy to advancing and diffusing this important knowledge.
Looking forward to next time!
LINK TO EVENT PHOTOS (https://photos.app.goo.gl/mEBGGNnu5MbiD9Ko6)
(https://i.imgur.com/UbgXaqx.jpeg)
This was by far one of the most gratifying shoots I have attended. Watching these marines faces light up when their groups tightened up again and again. I am more than looking forward to the next one I work.
Such a great group of kids.