Bethany trio joins Missouri Army National Guard

Pvt. Darin Dunlap, Pvt. Justin Flint, Pvt. Alex Foster and their recruiter Sgt. 1st Class Bobby Smith stand in front of the Military Entrance Processing Station moments after taking their oath and enlisting into the Missouri Army National Guard. (Photo by Jennifer Archdekin)


By Jennifer Archdekin
Ngmo.pao@US.ARMY.MIL
BETHANY - Bethany citizens have three more reasons to be proud of their community. On Sept. 29, Darin Dunlap, Justin Flint and Alex Foster, all students at Bethany High School, enlisted into the Missouri Army National Guard.

"I've always wanted to be in the military," said Foster, a junior." "I know it will be a good adventure and a good experience for me."

Foster was the first to make the decision, though he decided the military was the right path for him three years ago. Dunlap and Flint were not far behind in their decisions.

"The National Guard will give me a lot of experiences that I look forward to having," said Dunlap, a senior. "I just wanted to be a part of the military and see the world."

"I have family in armed forces," said Flint, a junior. "I wanted to join for the experience and to serve my country."

Foster and Flint will train to be signal support systems specialists and Dunlap will serve as an information technology specialist. Each Soldier will ship to basic training this summer and go through it alone, but eventually the trio will serve side-by-side each other in the 311th Brigade Support Battalion in Lexington.

"The military is one of those things that either you are or you aren't," said their recruiter, Sgt. 1st Class Bobby Smith. "If you want to join you're going to join, or you're going to wish forever that you did. Those that act on it will take that experience with them for the rest of their lives."

Smith is quick to point out just why these young men stand out.

"Bethany has three young men that said 'I want to make a difference in my life and the generations to come,'" said Smith. "Collectively they have already separated themselves from the public, in Bethany no doubt, and even broader in northwest Missouri."

Of the nearly 6 million Missourians in the state, currently there are about 11,500 Soldiers and Airmen serving in the Missouri National Guard. That is less than one-half percent of Missouri's population.

"That sounds like a lot of people, but per capita, that's not a lot of people at all," said Smith. "When you start talking about pride and patriotism within your community, Bethany being a town of about 3,000 people, three guys enlisting on the same day, that's something that Bethany should be proud of."


Though these new Soldiers now share a common bond by being Guardsmen, they are still unique in their own right.

"Individually I think they all come with something a little different," said Smith. "Flint's a wrestler, Foster's a football player and Dunlap is the comic relief. You have to have all those personalities to make the military work. Each one brings something different to the table."

Upon enlistment, each of these Soldiers will earn over $500 a month in GI Bill benefits plus 100 percent college tuition assistance.

For more information about the Missouri National Guard, please call 1-800-GoGuard or visit www.moguard.com.

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For more information about this release, please contact Jennifer Archdekin at 816-262-2893 or e-mail at jarchdekin@gmail.com