Young Marines

The Young Marines is a youth program in the United States and Japan open to all youth between the ages of 8 to 18 or completion of high school (whichever is later, not to exceed 20 years of age)

The creed that every Young Marine lives by is:

The obligation which they stand by is: "From this day forward, I sincerely promise, I will set an example for all other youth to follow and I shall never do anything that would bring disgrace or dishonor upon my God, my country and its flag, my parents, myself or the Young Marines. These I will honor and respect in a manner that will reflect credit upon them and myself. Semper Fidelis."

US Congress found in the Recruiting, Retention, and Reservist Promotion Act of 2000 that Young Marines and similar programs "provide significant benefits for the Armed Forces, including significant public relations benefits."

It should be noted that the Young Marines are not a recruitment tool for militaries of any sort, combat skills are not taught, and it is not a "Scared Straight Program" for wayward youth. At the same time, events that Young Marines may participate in may involve close connection with public relations aspects of the armed forces.

The Young Marines was founded in 1959, by the Brass City detachment of the Marine Corps League in Waterbury, CT. The Young Marines received its charter on October 17, 1965, and continued its affiliation with the MCL as well as becoming US Marine Corps drug demand reduction program for youth in July 1993. In 1975 the Young Marines extended its membership to females, and in 1995 the program went international with units in Okinawa, Japan. The Young Marine program was awarded the Fulcrum Shield in 2001. This was the first Fulcrum Shield Award ever bestowed.

The Young Marines are different from JROTC units, in that they are not part of high school and are a 501(c)3 non-profit instead of a government agency. It is open to children from the ages of eight years old through high school. Most units require a registration fee ranging from fifty to two hundred dollars to enroll, with an annual reregistration ranging from twenty to fifty dollars a year. Generally, units meet on local military bases or other locations such as American Legion, VFW, Fire or Sheriff Dept. etc. where a building serves as their headquarters and classroom.

The organization has over 300 units with over 13,000 Young Marines and 3,000 adult volunteers in 46 states, the District of Columbia, and affiliates in a host of foreign countries including Germany and Japan.

Like the Marine Corps, the Young Marines have 7 divisions, each with multiple regiments. The command is from national, to division, to regiment, to battalion, to unit. Unit commanders must normally be retired or former marines with an honorable discharge, or active or reserve marines in good standing. For additional information see the YM national website.

...
Wikipedia