To the Officers, Cadets, and Recruits of the American Cadet Alliance, I have a few words to say..

You should be proud of yourselves. You are a part of the oldest nationwide Cadet Corps in our great country. Each and every one of you are part of an ongoing legacy of Honor, Courage, and Commitment. These are our Core Values and the embodiment of the ACA.

This program has come such a long way since that April day ninety-six years ago when Colonel Cody's Boy Scouts began. Think of all that has been accomplished since then! We have survived having our Marine Corps and Army brethren joining us, the near loss of our program during the Vietnam War, and countless Annual Trainings, both good and bad (Camp Blanding!). That's a LOT to go through!

Today, with all that behind us, we all should be excited with what the future holds for our Corps and ourselves. This upcoming weekend we will be celebrating the ACA's 96th birthday at our first annual Birthday Ball! Also, this weekend will be the annual Executive Leadership Conference where all the new opportunities our program has will be discussed and decided upon. This is an exciting time for the ACA, and I hope everything that we do in the upcoming months will help the ACA serve our country by providing another 96th years of excellence.

On behalf of the thousands of young men and women - past, present and future - who proudly call themselves Naval Cadet, Marine Cadet or Army Cadet, as well as our dedicated officers Corps...HAPPY BIRTHDAY!


C/SCPO(DV) Joseph M. Land, Jr
Senior Cadet Advisor to the Commandant
American Cadet Alliance
National Headquarters