<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1VDVvl_1H34PT0S00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1VDVvl_1H34PT0S00" width="1200" height="600" >WAYNESVILLE, Mo. (KY3) - Founded by the United States Marine Corps League in 1965, the Young Marines is a program for kids ages 8 through high school.“I tell you, it’s a rewarding adventure,” retired U.S. Marine Steve Nutter said.Steve is the Unit Commander with the Pulaski County unit. He founded the unit in 2005, one year after he retired.“(The kids) build self-confidence,” Steve said. “They are involved in all kinds of civic activities. They have a physical fitness program.”Every unit needs adult volunteers. Active-duty Marine Corporal Assitan Sylla, who is at the Fort Leonard Wood detachment, takes a lot of pride in helping out.“I think this is an amazing program,” Cpt. Sylla said. “They do need some form of discipline. They do need a mind of their own to think. They do need a community that they can take from and give back.”Steve stresses this is not a recruiting tool for the Marine Corps, or a home for wayward kids.It’s about laying a great foundation for our future generation.“A program that you could join in, it helps you a lot,” 11-year-old Pvt. Bridgette Rutter of the Young Marines said. “You learn a lot, and you could look back on it and say, oh, that really actually did help me a lot in my building up to be an adult.”Bridgette and her older sister, 15-year-old Brianna, have been with the Pulaski County Unit since they moved here.From community service to Wreaths Across America, Memorial Day ceremonies to placing flags at Marine graves, these Young Marines are everywhere.“A woman came up to us and asked if we could visit her husband at the (Veterans’) wall,” Lance Cpl. Brianna Rutter of the Young Marines said. “Because she said she didn’t know if she could make the trip because of her old age, per se. So now every year when we get the chance to go to that wall, we go see her husband.”The Young Marines are always focused on giving back to the community, but not always their community. Recently, this unit made a trip to Arizona to learn while giving back.“I think that’s vitally important for them to get a first-hand, actual hands-on view of history and how our veterans and the Code Talkers specifically played the part,” Nutter said.The Navajo Code Talkers were Marines who played a vital role in helping the Allies and saved countless lives. By using their native language, the Japanese could never break the crucial communication.“When we met the descendants of Navajo code talkers,” Brianna said, “it was very enlightening to hear their stories and recount their relatives’ stories as well. And also learn about the history of the Navajo people and the significance of Window Rock to their culture.”“People that clear the path so you can be standing where you are,” Cpl. Sylla said, “and even as adults, we do need to look at that as well.”“So we try to get them out and see other parts of the world, for one, and then see other kids,” Nutter added.If you’d like to learn more about the Pulaski County Young Marines, email Steve Nutter at pulaski@youngmarines.comTo report a correction or typo, please email digitalnews@ky3.com. Please include the article info in the subject line of the email.</div></body>

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WAYNESVILLE, Mo. (KY3) - Founded by the United States Marine Corps League in 1965, the Young Marines is a program for kids ages 8 through high school. “I tell you, it’s a rewarding adventure,” retired U.S. Marine Steve Nutter said. Steve is the Unit Commander with the Pulaski...

Ozarks Life: Young Marines making a difference in Pulaski County, Mo.

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WAYNESVILLE, Mo. (KY3) - Founded by the United States Marine Corps League in 1965, the Young Marines is a program for kids ages 8 through high school. “I t

Ozarks Life: Young Marines making a difference in Pulaski County, Mo.

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