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First Lieutenant Steven Rendon

Infantry Officer Rendon is executive officer for his unit. He earned his commission through ROTC at Texas A&M University. He said being an officer is a rewarding experience. "To be a good officer, you have to be committed to your men, commi...

First Lieutenant Steven Rendon

I'm First Lieutenant Steven Rendon from Harlingen, Texas; I'm am 11 Alpha, infantry officer, currently servicing as executive officer.

Prior to joining the Army, I was in college or I was in an ROTC program, Texas A&M, and then I decided to contract as for an Army officer my sophomore year from then on I've been contracted in the Army one way or another, either in the Reserve or active duty. What it means to be an Army officer for me is, it's a lot of responsibility. It's a lot of responsibility but it's also the most rewarding things I think I could do and that I have definitely ever done in my life.

I had a platoon of 20 Soldiers, and leading them on missions, some of them 24-48- hour missions in some of really hard conditions, was extremely rewarding. It encompassed everything that I could possibly think of to be a good person. Having to lead Soldiers. Being there for them in the middle of the night, in the middle of the afternoon, on the weekends no matter what. It was extremely rewarding being there for those men when they needed me to be.

To be a good officer, you have to be committed to your men. You have to be committed to your mission. You have to know that sometimes you're going to have long days, but in the end of it, at the end of those days, your mission will be accomplished and your men will get to go home.

One of the most exciting, rewarding and challenging things I've done in my time in the Army has been going Army airborne school. Something that I never thought I'd be doing. Jumping out of a plane, I ended up dong it five times as well as one time at night with full combat equipment. That was one of the things that I walked away from, really in shock, that I was able to find the internal courage to bring myself to do that. Standing there looking out the door of the plane, watching the earth underneath me passing by and knowing that it's my turn to jump out. That was probably one of the most exciting things that I've done.

I'm always learning that I can overcome whatever obstacles put in front of me. And no matter how scared I am, I can push through it in order to do what I have to do or needs to get done.

The Army, on a daily basis, helps prepare me for my future. Now what that future is I don't know. But I know that everything I'm learning right now is really going to help me out. As far as leadership, my ability to overcome challenges and to plan for the unexpected--I feel like those are all things that are going to serve me later on in life.

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First Lieutenant Steven Rendon