Sabre Now - May 27, 2016
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Transcript of Sabre Now - May 27, 2016
“ Indeed the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will
be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone. And yet
I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.” — John 16:32
NKJV
No more fitting a passage came to my mind when I
thought of the end of the school year. Within mere hours, we
will all be gone from this campus, some never to return. For
many, this is a time when a
new book is opened in our
lives, not just a new chapter.
Calling the journey through
Fork Union a “chapter” of our
lives is certainly insufficient;
we live a volume of many
books in our years on Earth,
and the unique experience held
by all at this great school is one
of them. In the above verse,
Jesus is talking to His disciples about his near future, and He
follows it by saying in verse 33 of the same chapter: “In Me you
may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be
of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” Is that not reassur-
ing?
Seniors: in the twinkle of an eye, you will be embark-
ing on a new journey, and yet a new book in your life’s volume.
There’s simply no need to say that you will all do great things,
it’s foreknown from all of your great success in making it
through the slalom of life here that you will. Your colleges will
be lucky to have you; whether you applied for the hopes of
making it big in athletics, or prefer trigonometry to track, your
hard work will result in success wherever life will take you.
Upon departure, you will undoubtedly realize that
Fork Union Military Academy’s five core values do not neces-
sarily permeate college life. In fact, universities in the United
States have been forsaking their spirituality for ideas of equali-
ty and universal acceptance. I have never heard of a human on
Earth more universally accepting than Jesus Christ, who open-
ly healed socially-dejected lepers and restored sight to beg-
gars. He talked to unbelievers, spoke to those who denounced
His name, and never ceased professing the Truth of the Gospel,
even unto his physical death at Pilate’s hand. Christ was and is
the only true beacon and con-
stant source of equality that the
world has ever known. No ac-
tions by any government or ad-
ministration will ever treat all of
God’s children with the love,
equality, patience and grace that
Christ Jesus always has.
To those readers among you
who’ve proclaimed Jesus Christ
as not only your Savior but your
Lord, hold strong to the core of your beliefs. College will put
your faith t o the test in many ways. The Atlantic puts it like
this: “[Freshmen] leave their church, the community incentives
to attend it, and the watchful eye of parents who get angry or
make them feel guilty when they don’t go to services or stray
in their faith. Suddenly they’re surrounded by dorm mates of
different faiths or no faith at all.” It’s a problem for sure, but
being a churchgoer does not equate to a relationship with God.
With vigilance, a young man of strong faith will shine his light
into the darkness that envelopes many universities in America.
A tad shorter, admittedly, but as a note to you under-
classmen who will not see college life just yet, take this sum-
mer vacation and use it to the fullest. You all deserve it for
your fantastic work this year. We’ll see you again soon.
A Life of Faith, John 16:32
Volume I , Issue 6:
Graduat ion Edi t ion
Graduat ion
Edit ion
May
27
2016 Written by: Cadet Micah Giszack
Volume I , Issue 6: Graduat ion Edi t ion Page 2
Discipline is the practice of training people to obey
rules or a code of behavior, employing punishment to correct
disobedience. What have I learned while at Fork Union Mili-
tary Academy? I learned that closing the gap between my
goals and myself is entirely dependent on not just discipline,
but self-discipline, a trait that Fork Union instills in cadets,
even if they only view the tasks at hand as trite or bland. The
system of organization provided by FUMA continues to allow
me to grow and heighten my abilities which will cause me to
be successful both here and in the outside world. In my first
two weeks at Fork Union, discipline came across by more
instantaneous means: football pre-season began and so did
the rush to become a winning team did . At the time, all I felt
was pain as my body ached from the long, gruelling practice
hours, but at the end of those two weeks I began to recognize
the skills I had gained and how much I had learned. While
discipline is difficult, it is essential to becoming everything
you are capable of being. CQ, the dreaded evening study ses-
sion that cadets bemoan, is what grows them and teaches
them how to be successful in a college and in a working envi-
ronment; students at regular high schools just never so com-
pletely learn the immediate consequences of falling behind in
your work as we do with the One Subject Plan. Tasks given to
us by FUMA are what give us an edge in life to do better, ac-
complish more, and go above and beyond. Discipline closes
the gap between failure and triumph.
FUMA is an academy that has garnered a reputation
for bringing people in from all sorts of backgrounds, whether
as a seventh grader from Florida or a postgraduate from its
very state of Virginia. I had a chance to sit down and inter-
view one of this year’s current postgraduate basketball play-
ers, Eddie Johnson-Clayton as we talked about his experience
at FUMA.
Johnson-Clayton is a six-foot-six power forward
from Chesapeake Virginia. He was a successful player at his
alma mater, Deep Creek High School, earning 1st team all-
conference in his senior year, but he wished to hone his skills
and improve his game, which was one of the reasons he de-
cided to attend Fork Union.
When talking about the PG basketball season this
year, he stated that he did just that and explained how he
believes this team has, “set a standard for future players to
come.” This is safe to say considering how this has been
Coach Matthew Donohue’s first twenty-win season (25-7)
and the first time Fork Union has ever played in the national
prep school tournament. Johnson-Clayton credits much of
the success to the chemistry that the team acquired through
spending so much time together. “The team got along, we are
actually brothers here. It is literally like a family”, Said John-
son-Clayton when talking about his teammates. He feels that
he has obtained some long-term relationships evidenced how
he plans to stay in touch with some of the guys during and
even after college.
Eddie said that he has developed in rebounding,
defense, and in his mindset toward the game but he feels that
there has been an improvement off the court as well. He ex-
pressed how Fork Union has helped him to deeply instill “a
discipline of learning” with which he had never been familiar.
He said that FUMA has helped him to make better decisions
big and small and that he even plans to take things as simple
as tidying habits with him in the future.
Johnson-Clayton has a lot of great memories from
Fork Union but when I asked him which one he would put at
the top, he responded with the home victory against Har-
grave. “The experience of beating the number one team in
the country and having all of the fans storm the court was
incredible.” That unlikely win is definitely something John-
son Clayton and his teammates will cherish for a long time.
Johnson-Clayton has completed his goal of finishing
the year at Fork Union as a postgraduate but he has even
greater goals to achieve once he leaves especially “Getting a
degree,” according to him. His family has a tradition, which
they call the “Johnson Quota of learning,” in which everyone
in his family that graduates from college has their high school
picture on one side, and their college graduation picture on
the other. Johnson-Clayton is the youngest of his family but
plans to keep the tradition going on strong, as he will attend
Virginia Union in the fall. He has finished one leg of his jour-
ney, but has many more ahead of him and is excited to take
them on with full force.
Fork Union’s Edifice of Discipline Crafted by Cadet Luke Burton
Conducted and written by Cadet Charles Minlend
Plans of a Post-Graduate: The Clayton-Johnson Experience
Volume I , Issue 6: Graduat ion Edi t ion Page 3
My Life and Fork Union: A Recount by Coach Micky Sullivan Written by Coach Micky Sullivan
Well, I guess it’s finally time to leave. I know the sen-
iors & PGs who have spent anywhere from one to seven years
are not only excited to venture out, but nervous, too as they
await graduation day.
My mother dropped me off at Fork Union in 1965,
and I am still waiting on her to return. Well, mom or not, I am
finally going to leave FUMA. I have been a part of this place for
forty-two of the fifty-three years since September of 1963. So, I
guess I am a little excited to see what my new life will bring.
There have been many changes since I first arrived
here, and there will surely be slews more in the next years.
The library where I did all my research is now Flag Hall, the
band’s practice facility. I dissected frogs for my biology class
right where Major Krogh now sits in Perkins Technology Cen-
ter. We ate corps meals in the basement of Hatcher Hall, which
is now the home of the Academic Center. I sat down for Mess
III where Coach Brian Haney sits today. We watched movies in
Vaughn Hall, which has been used as both the Commandant’s
Department and now our social center, we played tag where
Wicker Science Hall now rests.
As an instructor, I have coached and taught in the
former Middle School Gym, a building which even current ca-
dets may have never entered. I watched the Estes Center rise
up from the ground, then nearly a decade ago, our Aquatics
Center followed suit. I watched the Estes Dining Hall and Ja-
cobson Hall pop up over the course of a few years. I witnessed
the destruction of Snead and Memorial Hall. Through all of
this, I’ve lived under presidents named Wicker, Whitescarver,
Clanton, Pulliam, Jackson and Burhoe guiding the FUMA ship
through times good and bad, spending untold hours trying to
make this school a better place for the teachers and the boys.
I experienced Viet Nam, the assassination of Presi-
dent Kennedy, September 11th, and the war against Bin Laden
in the Middle East. I lived through these things with men and
women of Fork Union as we learned about what it means to be
a patriot, faithful, and charitable. I was able to witness these
things through them by their words and their actions, too; the
way they lived their lives was enough.
I and many other fortunate men like me have learned
firsthand from great men like Blair, Pulliam, Clark, Shuman,
Hardy, Hitchcock, Nicholson, Arritt, to name a few, the virtues
of mind, body and spirit, and the precepts of respect for self
and for others. They taught me how to face adversity, and to
stand accountable for my actions, that I need to get up and
press on; persevere always—even when immediate success is
unattainable. These invaluable skills and lessons were learned
on and off the field, through steady observation of these men-
tors and teachers living their lives as men of character and
morality.
I chose to come to Fork Union in 1963, and alongside
my wife Kathy, chose again to return as a teacher in 1975, then
again after that in 1983. It was at this time that I finally under-
stood that I was meant to be a teacher and coach, not a busi-
nessman. I never regretted any of these decisions. As a cadet
on ED, however, I did start to wonder…
These forty-two years from my old days have been
filled with names the likes of Doug, Dickie and Josh, not to
mention Coaches Blair, Pulliam, Miller and Clark, Cols. Spencer
and Ruttman. In my coaching and teaching years, I think of the
names of good, now-men, like Shuman and Banch to George,
Perry, Bodine and Hackenberg and interns Lee and Sposato.
Mixed in with these players’ names are my current or former
co-workers including Donohue, Hazlett, Hooper, Hardy, Shu-
man, Hitchcock and Brown. All of these boys and men have
taught me merits like teamwork, respect, character, truth, and
honor, both through actions and through their words. The
memories that I have will surely last me a lifetime. I will al-
ways be thankful for the time I have spent on this campus.
My Fork Union brothers from the graduating class of
1966 use the term “home” to refer to this place a great deal,
but they did not always think of it in that way. The graduates
this year will not all immediately link the words FUMA and
home immediately, but as it happened for me and my class-
mates, so it will for the young men who will go forth on Satur-
day. I will always know that this small place in Central Virginia
is my home.
Over the run of my life, I have been known by many titles
which include cadet, PG, graduate, husband, dad (and pop, of
course). Today, I will get to add another to that list: retired.
As we all leave this hallowed place, I want to wish each of you
good luck. May God Almighty bless and keep you, and allow
you to find a place to call “home” like I do and always will.
Go FUMA class of 2016!
Volume I , Issue 6: Graduat ion Edi t ion Page 4
Throughout this past school year, the Fork Union chapter of
the Interact/Rotary Club has made it their mission to end
strife and support the community around it. To this end, they
engaged in a plethora of volunteer projects with compassion-
ate hearts and firm resolves. In October, the entire club
played their part to end poverty in Stop Hunger Now. The
cadets operated a sort of human assembly line, passing bags
of vitamins, vegetables, protein mix, and rice for the benefit
of those stricken with destitution. At its conclusion, the ca-
dets and supporting members of the community surpassed
their goal, packing a grand total of 18,000 food parcels for
immediate consignment to the needy. Furthermore, in De-
cember, a few members of the club volunteered to take part
in Happy Face. In this magnanimous endeavor, a charity ac-
cumulates donations in order to gather gifts for underprivi-
leged families during Christmastime. As an active participant
in Happy Face, I can personally attest that the smiles on the
children’s faces as you hand them a Hot Wheels car are un-
forgettable… to say the least. Moreover, in March, cadets Ed-
ward Thomas and Ryan McEnroe enlisted to jump in the frig-
id waters of Lake Monticello [1] to raise pledges for a collec-
tive sum of $250. Combined with the other participants in the
Penguin Plunge, they raised $21,000 for charity. All these
projects show just how much good one organization can do.
This year, we at The Sabre have produced a lot of
content. Right now, you are reading the sixth edition of the
Sabre Now, the up-to-date newsletter that we trialed this
school year, for the first time ever. We had three printed edi-
tions of The Sabre, our iconic print newspaper, all of which
were received fantastically.
One notable hindrance in a cadet-run newspaper is
that the ebb and flow of articles and editing changes with the
terms; if a particularly active writer finds himself in an inor-
dinately busy class, his productivity is crimped. The same
goes for the editing of the articles. We have one cadet editor
and one faculty editor who is also tasked with various com-
mittees and classes of her own. In this situation where we
must meet a tight deadline whilst ensuring utmost quality,
auxiliary help is needed.
If it were not for the fantastic work of Mrs. Hitch-
cock this school year, our team of writers and editors could
not have done all that we did. Last year God blessed us with a
large team of writers and editors. This year, He blessed us
with her. From all of us at The Sabre, thank you, ma’am for all
of your work. You did not have to do any of this. You used
your skills to do God’s work with our young men, and that is
more than any of us could have ever asked for.
A Year of Interaction
A Thank-You to Mrs. Cathy Hitchcock
Crafted by Cadet Dalton Fowler
A Message from The Sabre
Faith Is...
Faith is believing, although you are not
seeing—faith is knowing that there
is a heavenly being
Faith is maintaining your hope when it
seems there is none. Faith is know-
ing you have won the war before
the battle is won
Faith is believing yes, when others say
no! It is determination on the go
Faith is not giving up when you have a
setback. Faith is belief that you’ll get
back on track
Faith is knowing that there’s a power
greater than you, realizing that no
giant can keep you from going
through
Faith is finishing the race even though
your legs ache. It is not letting evil
make you break
Faith is belief in God’s holy word, know-
ing that as His child, you’re set apart
Faith is living in, but not confirming to
the ideologies of this land; overcom-
ing adversity—again and again
Faith of any strength is acknowledged by
God. You just believe and he’ll do
His part
Faith lets you avoid life’s fiery darts,
faith is the key to God’s loving heart.
Faith is...
Originally Crafted by Mr. James, FUMA staff
Volume I , Issue 6: Graduat ion Edi t ion Page 5
As we arrive at the conclusion of this school year,
yet another beautiful tree has been added to the FUMA arbor.
This marks the third year in which a tree has been dedicated
to the year’s cadet graduates, as well as retirees. This year’s
retirees honored by the dedication of this tree are Mrs. Cindi
McIlnay, Mr. J.R. Smith, Mrs. Henri Cobb, COL Micky Sullivan,
and LTC Ed Moore.
The trees, of the weeping cherry variety, have been donated
annually, starting in 2014, by the Global Citizens’ Club, found-
ed and lead by Mrs. Katherine Giszack since 2013. Each year,
the Global Citizens’ Club hosts multiple fundraising events,
including doughnut sales (the cadets enjoy this one), in order
to raise the money they need both to fund their club’s ex-
penses, as well as the community service acts that they as-
pire to complete in any given year.
As the close to this fine school year is upon us, the Global
Citizens’ Club, as well as all other faculty members, staff, and
cadets, wish all of our graduates and retirees both luck in
success in all of their future academic, or otherwise, endeav-
ors.
As we look back on this past academic year, it might
interest you to know that we had 95 chapel services this
year. In addition to myself, Fork Union’s chaplain, we had 20
individuals present special messages to the corps. Six of these
were Christian Leadership Series speakers, three were alumni,
and three were current cadets. Also, six current faculty or
staff presented a total of 16 messages between themselves. In
all, 30 times in chapel this year, there was someone other than
yours truly speaking to you.
All these different voices presented personal mes-
sages of faith and the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the Fork Union
community. What a wonderful opportunity for us to hear
from God in such diverse ways! And while we may not all
remember each message specifically, I pray that each of us
connected at a spiritual level with at least one chapel message
this year. As we move on along life’s journey from this school
year, we will all have various experiences in different plac-
es. But the constant for all of us will always be God. No matter
where we are, and what we are experiencing, God is and will
always be ever-present: omnipresent, and He chooses many
different ways to communicate with us. Sometimes the deliv-
ery method is varying, and many times, the voice He uses will
change.
My question for you is this: are you listening for Him
in the midst of your busy life?
Have a great summer, and always keep listening for God!
Tree Dedication for 2016’s Retirees, Seniors & PG class
A Send-Off Message... Are You Listening for God? Crafted by Chaplain James Benson
Created by Cadet Jared Giszack
FUMA’s All-State Baseball Players Created by Cadet Zachary Miller
Just recently, Fork Union’s Prep Baseball’s team had
two cadets selected as 2016 VISAA Division 1 All-State play-
ers. Junior Jacob Grabeel and Sophomore Adam Hackenberg
earned All-State honors. Both cadets were named to Virginia
Prep League’s All-Prep team as well. In order to be selected to
the All-Prep team, the player’s averages are totaled and if they
are in the top percent of the Prep League then the player re-
ceives a vote for the team. A committee then narrows the se-
lections down until a certain number of players are reached.
Cadet Jacob Grabeel finished the season with a .286
batting percentage. He also pitched 7 games with 38
strikeouts and only allowing one home run in 191 at bats.
Cadet Adam Hackenberg held a .407 batting average and 30
runs along with two home runs to add to his totals. We are
very proud of these two cadets and their athletic achieve-
ments, and are certain that they will continue doing great
things in the future.
Phone: 434-848-3212
Address: 4744 James Madison Hwy
Fork Union, VA 23055
Comments for Sabre Now: [email protected]
All back issues can be found here
Or, visit www.tiny.cc/sabre or bit.do/fumasabre
Lifetime Brotherhood
Editor’s Note
We are almost there! It’s almost the point of the year in
which cadets’ mouths begin to water at the prospect of
summer vacation. It really seems like just two or three
months, rather than six, that we’ve been in this academic
session. The third leg of the “marathon” begins on March
14th. This is already the fourth edition of the Sabre Now,
and though I myself may be partial, it seems to have been
successful thus far. Although only time will dictate the
future of Now, all signs point toward a bright future. We
have only attained increasingly greater support from cadets
and faculty for not just readership, but also contributions
toward this newsletter. This edition was filled with high-
quality writing from Sabre staff members, and FUMA
faculty, with a special thanks to Captain Greenspon for his
excellent lacrosse piece. In the box above, there is a
hyperlink to Sabre Now’s online library, and this is a
secondary link. We encourage anyone who enjoys this
newsletter to share it with absolutely anyone interested in
keeping up with events both on campus and the ones that
are happening elsewhere, but intrigue our writers. The
Sabre wishes all cadets and their families a happy spring
break, and we look forward to seeing this school year
through with all of you. Until next time.
Fork Union Military Academy
Editor’s Note
What now can I say that has not
already been said? The end-of-year
cliche s are never-ending, it would
seem, though in truth, many of them
hold true. On the first page, I talked
about the success you will all find in
your adult lives, and surely others
have said the same. It may seem a
broken record at times, but
nonetheless true. Undoubtedly,
you’re receiving advice and tips from
parents and other family and friends
about what to do in college, but it’s
not something you need to stress
about. Remain steadfast in your faith
and follow the rules (as if it needed to
be said) and soon enough, you will be
closing the book that was your time at
college. Whether or not you began
your high-school career at Fork Union
or some other place, you all
remember your first day of high
school, and you will not soon forget it,
nor this one. Your graduation is a
lifetime memory, and you should be
proud that you are about to walk
across that stage. Until next time.
Time at Fork Union is not easy. It is not simple. It is not always fun. It is not
boring. It is not common. Time at Fork Union is not time spent alone. There
will always be a comradery that extends even well beyond the reaches of
our campus.
Even without parents and siblings, even without our houses, we will al-
ways be family and this will always be our home.
Above: A group photo
of the International
Students’ Picnic from
the end of April 2016
Right: Fork Union
class of 1966 on
Alumni Day.
Below: Ceremony for
distribution of rings
for the classes of
2016 and 2017.