McClain Cadet Corps Color Guard presents colors prior to Reds/Padres game
The McClain Cadet Corps Color Guard is pictured during its pregame performance at the June 27 Reds game in Cincinnati. (Courtesy of the Reds)
By Angela Shepherd
GEVS
On the last Friday of June, the McClain Cadet Corps Color Guard presented the colors, or flags, prior to the Cincinnati Reds matchup with the San Diego Padres. It’s something the McClain Cadet Corps Color Guard is no stranger to doing at the Great American Ball Park.
The color guard did it in May, too. In fact, MSgt. John Wilson, who leads the McClain Cadet Corps, said that since 2022 the color guard has been invited to perform 11 times at the Great American Ball Park. It’s something that Wilson said likely speaks to the caliber of the performance provided.
The McClain Cadet Corps Color Guard members performing at the June 27 Reds game were Jayden Lanning, Eli Douglas, Chimera Bryant and Ava Wilson. This performance includes the presentation of the flags as well as the two outside cadets performing with rifles.
The cadets chosen for this detail are commonly referred to as “The Four Horsemen,” Wilson said, and represent the best performers. He said the students begin performing after receiving their on-campus qualification during training in class, and then their off-campus qualification. Only then are they able to advance to performing at an event like the Reds game. The June 27 team consisted of three fifth-year cadets and one second-year cadet.
The June 27 game was also part of a multi-day celebration of the Big Red Machine 50th Anniversary Reunion, so many of those players who were part of those legendary Reds teams in the mid 1970s were also part of the activities of June 27th. There were many members of the Big Red Machine at the ballpark that day for a pregame parade and included Johnny Bench, Tony Perez, Cesar Geronimo, Doug Flynn, George Foster, Tom Hall and more.
The cadets, and those with them, got to take in some of the behind-the-scenes activities involving the players of those legendary teams, which just added another layer of excitement to the evening.
The McClain Cadet Corps has its own Facebook page where posts are often made concerning cadet activities. To keep up with what’s going on in the Greenfield Exempted Village School District, you can check out the district’s website and social media pages. Additionally, the individual buildings have Facebook pages.
Below, MSgt John Wilson is pictured with the color guard members prior to the June 27 performance. They are under the stadium doing what Wilson called the "common exercise" where they practice synchronizing the weapons in anticipation of performing on the field. (Courtesy of Jennifer Fligor.)
Below, the McClain Cadet Corps Color Guard is pictured marching from center field at the Great American Ball Park on June 27 for the pregame performance. (Courtesy of John Wilson.)
