HONOR DUTY RESPECT - The Citadel

By Ensign Jordan Smith, ’12As The Citadel expands its third annual Leadership Day (originally called Heroism Day), we reflect onthe heroism of one alumnus whose lifetime of service and smaller selfless choices prepared him tomake the ultimate sacrifice. On Jan. 13, 1982, Air Florida flight 90 took off from Washington NationalAirport heading for Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The flight would not reach its destination.As the plane took off, ice buildup and pilot error caused it tocrash into the 14th Street Bridge and sink into the icy PotomacRiver, killing 73 people aboard. A helicopter arrived on the scene,lowering a lifeline to the six survivors. When the line reached thewater, one survivor took it. But instead of hooking himself up toit, he passed it to a fellow survivor. The survivor was lifted out ofthe frigid water, and the process was repeated four more times.Each time, the same man passed the lifeline to another survivor.By the time the helicopter came back for him, both the planeand the man who had selflessly put the lives of others beforehimself had slipped beneath the icy Potomac. It took several daysto determine that the man who gave his life for his unknownfellow passengers was Arland D. Williams, ’57.370 cadets participating, platoons of 30 cadets left campus forPatriots Point and the U.S.S. Yorktown. The road march took thecadets through the neighborhoods surrounding the campus, overthe Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge, and to Patriots Point, where theyhad lunch and were free to tour the ship and visit the Medal ofHonor Museum. After a period of reflection, the cadets marchedback to campus, this time with a deeper appreciation of what themilitary members before them endured.On the same day, 634 freshmen guided by 134 trained juniorand senior cadet leaders participated in a program through theCharleston County School District to thank a hero. The cadetstraveled to 13 schools to engage in conversations with studentsIn Williams’s memory and to celebrate heroism as a virtueof principled leaders, The Citadel and the Krause Center forLeadership and Ethics hosted the first Arland D. WilliamsHeroism Day on Election Day, Nov. 2, 2010, with 150 cadetsparticipating in community service. Building on the success ofthe first endeavor, the following Heroism Day expanded intoan event of stunning scale, engaging almost the entire Corps ofCadets in a variety of service projects across the Lowcountry. Themotto—Remember a Hero, Thank a Hero, Be a Hero—challengedcadets, graduate students, faculty and staff to take part in one ofthe 26 service learning, remembrance or training opportunitiesavailable on campus and in the community.To remember a hero, members of ROTC departments organizeda road march and physical fitness challenge to honor the servicemen and women who had served before them. With more thanabout what heroism means to both the school children and thecadets. While there serving as mentors, the cadets asked theyounger students to identify their own heroes, then helped thestudents create more than 3,000 thank-you cards, which othercadets later distributed to veterans, police officers, firefightersand heroes around Charleston.“It was a great way for us to get off campus, work with childrenand learn a little about ourselves through interacting withpeople. It is also important to realize that heroes are foundnot only in the military but everywhere around us,” said CadetThomas Clark, now a sophomore.Cadets had the opportunity to be a hero by participating in anassortment of community service projects in the area. Frombuilding houses for families in need to volunteering at localanimal shelters, cadets engaged in a wide range of service18