By Rachel Lippmann, KWMU
St. Louis, MO – The head of a local drill team says he's elated that its members will be in Washington, D-C for the inaugural parade in January.
The inaugural committee of President-Elect Barack Obama selected the Marine Corps JROTC Color Guard and Drill Team from Theodore Roosevelt High to be one of two Missouri schools in the parade. The other is from suburban Kansas City.
Inner city schools often don't have the best image, said Marine Master Sergeant Isaiah McHellen, the group's commander
"And this shows that regardless of whether you're, what school you're in in the St. Louis public schools, that whatever the possibility is, it's well within your grasp," he said.
McHellen says preparation for the parade isn't the hard part - the group practices drilling every day.
"When you're talking about a national stage, we all get a little nervous," he admitted. "But at this particular point in time, the students have not showed any of that some I'm confident that their preparation will be all that's needed.'
McHellen says the 23-member group is raising funds to pay for the trip to DC.