NEWS
Caleb Linder Tecumseh AFJROTC 0111 006

Tecumseh High School senior Caleb Linder was recently accepted to the Merchant Marine Academy, an offer only extended to exceptional students who have been recommended to the program by a Senator or member of the House of Representatives.

Senator Sherrod Brown announced last week that he had nominated Linder and six other Ohio students to different armed service academies, all of which require such a recommendation to be considered for acceptance. Of the seven students recommended by Brown, Linder is the only one to have been accepted by his academy of choice—an offer he plans to officially accept this week.

Linder, 18, said he will leave home to begin the Merchant Marine Academy in June, just a few weeks after graduating from Tecumseh. Although an enormous culture shock likely awaits the lifelong Donnelsville resident as he leaves high school to immediately enter the academy located just outside New York City, Linder said he is not at all apprehensive about his transition, but thrilled about getting to see the world on his own.

“I’m excited about it—I’m looking forward to it,” said Linder. “Going from the little town of Donnelsville, Ohio to New York City almost…I’m looking forward to getting out and experiencing life for myself.”

Linder has been a member of Tecumseh’s Air Force Jr. ROTC since his freshman year, saying that the program helps to shape its students into people with high moral standards. He said that program directors Doug Couch and Antonio Ruiz “have been very supportive” of his quest to gain entry to the Merchant Marine Academy. He said they’ve been instrumental in teaching him about military life and the abilities required to be an effective leader—qualities that will likely serve Linder well this summer as he becomes “indoctrinated” into military life at the academy.

Linder said his desire to join the Merchant Marines began during the end of his junior year when he started attending “information nights” designed to instruct students about the respective armed services and the steps necessary to join. He said the more he heard about the Merchant Marine Academy, the more he was interested, saying it is the least-understood branch of the military.

Merchant Marines transport materials needed for all branches of the armed services to destinations where they are needed.

“They move cargo from port to port for the U.S. Military,” Linder said, explaining that all of the cargo is transported by sea.

Senator Brown nominated students from Champaign, Clark, Greene, Logan, Montgomery, and Preble Counties to U.S. Military Service Academies that require such recommendations in order to apply.

“Ohio schools are training young women and men who will be the next generation of military leaders. I am honored to nominate these outstanding students for our prestigious U.S. Military Service Academies,” Brown said in a release issued last week.

“These Ohioans embody the integrity and courage needed to represent and uphold the values of our nation. I am grateful for their dedication to serving our country.”

Brown nominates as many as ten students to military academies each year, including the Air Force Academy, West Point, Naval Academy, and the Merchant Marine Academy. Linder said he completed the process of requesting such a nomination from Brown, which required him to submit academic records, school involvement, and several letters of reference.

The Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, New York, is a four-year college, Linder said, after which, he plans to become a Naval officer. He said that as of now, he plans to retire from the armed services and make a career there, as his father was also in the Navy for 26 years.

“It’s what I want to do, and I’m looking forward to it,” said Linder.

Caleb Linder Tecumseh AFJROTC-0111-001 Caleb Linder Tecumseh AFJROTC-0111-004

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