Former PVES Student, Current Marine Attends Student Council Meeting

On April 9, 2025, the Pleasant View Elementary School (PVES) Student Council invited former PVES student- now Marine Corps bootcamp graduate, Chris Dillard, to speak at their student council meeting.

The Student Council, along with their faculty sponsor, Amy Whitworth, chose to adopt Dillard as one of their service projects. Students made him a “Way to Go!”poster for his motivational run with his platoon on family day in Parris Island, South Carolina, where he completed bootcamp after an ankle injury. The students also wrote letters of encouragement after hearing of his injury and him having to extend his time at Parris Island to recover from his broken ankle. 

Dillard shared his bootcamp experience and weight loss journey (losing 120 pounds before he left for bootcamp) with the student council who were eager to ask him questions about how he overcame obstacles and what he had to go through during his training. The students were very engaged when Dillard asked them questions and participated in the conversation making their short time together memorable.

Dillard was excited to share his story to hopefully inspire some of the students to join the military and give them some insight on what to expect in middle school once they promote next month.