Braden River youth follow the trail to teamwork

Sixteen-year-old Xavier Span already knew he was tough mentally when he laced up his shoes and joined fellow Braden River High School Junior ROTC students on an eight-mile day hike along the Appalachian Trail to see the Ramsey Creek Falls in Tennessee.

Fighting muscular dystrophy, a condition that causes progressive weakness and loss of muscle mass, Span also knew the outing would be challenging physically. His muscular dystrophy makes it hard for him to lift his feet and tires him more easily than his fellow JROTC members.

“My goal was to walk up to a waterfall [four miles] and walk back down by myself,” he said. “I was ready for anything, but that seemed to be out of my physical boundaries. But I pushed myself as hard as I could.”

During a 20-minute rest before the return trip from the waterfall, his classmates were discussing his plight. They knew the hike back was going to be tough, and fellow squad members and JROTC instructor Sgt. Major Matt Collis all volunteered to carry the 110-pound, 5-foot-7-inch upcoming junior back down the mountain.

“They were proud of me for getting that far,” Span said. “It made me feel they were like family away from home. It made me feel better. It was fun, too.”

The scene, Span said, exemplified what he had been learning from JROTC.

“You can’t always do things by yourself” he said. “But with a team, you can. It’s a team effort.”

Span and 42 upcoming sophomores, juniors and seniors in Braden River High School’s JROTC program hiked roughly 40 miles on the Appalachian Trail from June 10-14.

From their base camp in Cosby, Tenn., cadets would travel each day to a new starting point and hike to a particular destination and then back. One day, that was a fire tower built in 1936 by the Civilian Conservation Corp. Another, it was to see the 40-foot-high Ramsey Creek Falls.

They even hiked to the top of Mount LeConte where there’s the rustic LaConte Lodge, supplied with fresh bedding and other supplies every other day by a train of llamas.

“The llamas eat the leftover pancakes,” Collis said, laughing. “They fight for the pancakes.”

Collis said he does the trip each year because he loves the outdoors and hiking, and he wants to expose students to that lifestyle. Students’ cellphones are taken, and each squad gets a digital camera to capture moments on the trip. Ditching technology forces them to interact.

“They have to create things to do, be creative with what they have in nature,” Collis said.

He said the experience also hones students’ leadership skills.

“I look at it as a leadership lab,” Collis said. “Anybody can lead in a classroom, but when you get somebody hungry, cold, wet and dirty, it brings out difficulties.”

Cadets said they enjoyed hiking, cleaning up in the creek, having push-up contests, playing games they created and exploring the trails.

They returned, backpacks and sleeping bags in hand, to Braden River High’s parking lot June 15 ready to hug their parents, head home to take hot showers and tell stories of their adventures.

Cynthia Merkel was eager to hear about the adventures of her daughters, Valentina and Marina Herrera. She said the hike teaches students conflict resolution, leadership and gratitude.

“When they come back, you appreciate more,” she said of her two daughters.

Marina Herrera nodded her head in agreement.

“I’m very glad to be home— a clean shower, mom’s food,” she said. “I’m happy.”