NATIONALS DRILL CAMP SENIOR INSTRUCTOR PROFILES "Over 100 years of military training excellence"

Proud Sponsor of the Nationals Drill Camp Below you will find the senior instructors who annually teach at the Nationals Drill Camp. While schedules vary and some instructors cannot be in attendance every year, these individuals listed below represent the "Cream of the Crop" when it comes to military training of young cadets and JROTC instructors alike are are a great sample of the caliber of people brought to work with cadets and instructors. While it makes little business sense to have so many qualified individuals in one camp, IT MAKES GOOD DRILL SENSE to have so many people with such varied drill backgrounds and all-service affiliations to give each cadet attending the most well-rounded experience possible. These are accomplished individuals in and out of the drill world and all are to be THANKES IMMENSELY for taking a week out of their Summer to give back to the cadets not fortunate enough to be a part of their JROTC programs all year! We are both honored and proud to present these individuals to our camp attendees. Each will bring a strong presence and knowledge base for cadets and instructor camp attendees alike. While this list may change, we take great pride in bringing innovative, knowledgeable and exciting instructors to give the cadets and drill instructors attending the camp a great experience!

SGM Blaine Huston

SGM Blaine Huston is a motivational demon. His entire life has been the Army and the military and he is about as red, white and blue as any one man can become! He also knows his stuff about Army drill & ceremonies. Having served as a drill sergeant and then all the way through the ranks to be the Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Commandant on all matters pertaining to academics, policy and staff function within the Drill Sergeant School, Ft, Jackson, South Carolina, he was responsible for recruitment and selection of Chief Instructors (First Sergeants), Drill Sergeant and Platoon Sergeant Instructors. Responsible for the professional development and mentoring of 17 Senior Noncommissioned Officers and two DA Civilians. Responsible for updating policies and regulations pertaining to the Drill Sergeant and Platoon Sergeant Programs. So yes, awesome personified! But because of this unparalleled background and engaging personality, SGM attended the Nationals and returned multiple times and is a hit with the judges and cadets alike. Often heading up Unit Inspection, SGM Huston can both motivate and train with the best of them! His efforts to continually promote the sport of competitive drill are legendary and have occurred across the United States. Rarely can you find someone with a drill background while on active duty combined with such lofty accomplishment in the competition drill arena outside his normal duties. His classes and practical instruction are legendary and highly sought after by attendees every year.

1SG Jim Tadayeski is a native of Upstate New York and entered the U.S. Army in February of 1980. He attended Basic Training and Military Police Advance Individual Training at Fort McClellan, Alabama. His military education includes Basic Noncommissioned Officers, Advanced Noncommissioned Officers Course, First Sergeants Course, Battle Staff NCO Course and Master Fitness Trainers Course. He also attended Air Assault and Airborne School. In short, he has the amazingly wide and deep background to have seen it all. He brings that wealth of experience to make all aspects of the camp better, often giving suggestions on improvement year-round! 1SG "T" has held every leadership position from Team Leader to First Sergeant. He is also a graduate of the U.S. Army Drill Sergeant School where upon graduation he held a three year tour as a Drill Sergeant at Fort McClellan, Alabama. His assignments include three tours of duty in Germany as well as numerous stateside assignments to include the prestigious 3d US Infantry (The Old Guard). 1SG "T" was the primary JROTC Army drill instructor at Grant High School in Dry Prong, Louisiana, making a huge difference in the lives of many young people and their families. His program is very small in a small town but he annually dominates schools many times his size, capturing both his state championship and the prestigious Army championships on numerous occasions and also in his final year at the school the overall Demilitarized Ghampionship at the National High School Drill Team Championships. He is always "in the hunt" at the NHSDTC event despite having the smallest school in the Masters Level of the competition every year! His knowledge and skills are unparalleled as he is the "go to guy" for many across the nation for Army information, regulations and interpretation. Looking for new challenges he recently moved to become the primary drill instructor at Riverside Military Academy in Gainesville, Georgia. The program is best known for their dominant Raider teams and instilling a drill culture will take time, However, smart money says at the end of the day this program will again be dominating drill & ceremony competitions in and out of Georgia in a very short timeframe under the steady had of this amazing individual. 1SG Tadayeski is an original member of the NDC instruction team and has contributed so much to what we see every year. In the meat & potatoes world of competition drill, 1SG remains the gold standard!

1SG (Ret.) Jim Tadayeski

MSG (Ret.) Lawrence Badia

MSG (Ret.) Lawrence Badia is a native of Long Island, New York and entered the Army in November 1977. He served for 21 years as a military policeman and combat medic. MSG Badia served his last 12 years in the United States Army Recruiting Command, with assignments in New York, Ft. Rucker, Alabama and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. This gave him a fantastic ability to relate to young men and women, and he is easily one of the camp favorites for both the content and manner of his instruction. His attention to detail and exacting nature served him well in the regular Army and it has led him to national prominence in his transition to JROTC excellence. Since September 1998 immediately upon his retirement, MSG Badia started working at Francis Lewis High School in Queens, New York. MSG Badia took over the Armed Drill Team at that time and has taken a relatively unknown inner city drill unit with no real connection to the military closer and closer to the top at the National High School Drill Team Championships, finally winning the Demilitarized Arms Division Overall Championship in 2009 and several times since! The Patriot Guard Armed drill team continued to improve and currently maintains the unquestioned status as one of the finest drill programs from any service in the Eastern United States. He pushes leadership and motivation and loves a challenge. More importantly, he instills these items in all of those who work with him. MSG Badia believes in hard work and total dedication, and his teams personify this philosophy every year win or lose. He loves imparting this philosophy at the NDC and has done so now as one of the most valued instructors who has attended every camp since they began in 2007. "MSG" is without parallel in his love of the kids and his passion for competition drill. and in 2019, MSG Badia was elected for inclusion within the National Military Drill Hall of Fame - a well deserved honor for an amazing man!

MSgt Ybarra has been a valued member of the SNIYF team for many years, serving as the most experienced and most knowledgeable Air Force evaluator in exhibition drill, as well as providing solid judging in all facets of the National High School Drill Team Championships. MSgt Ybarra, a well-known Ceremonial Guardsman, has over thirty years of complex weapons handling experience. Foy H. Moody High School NJROTC drill team in Corpus Christi, Texas began his love of drill, resulting in being the only freshman named to the 1983 Trojan Guard marching fourteen. So yes, he is not just a teacher, he is a performer. Because of this, he understands and can work with the cadets on a level few can match! He enlisted in July of 1988, served 24 years in the Air Force Engineer career field and was selected to five extensive special duty assignments to four honor guard programs. MSgt Ybarra's JROTC and Honor Guard experiences are key to his passion and love for all things drill. They remain the catalysts to his ceaseless involvement with thousands or cadets across our nation. He founded, trained and mentored drill team programs at Vandenberg AFB, CA, Lackland AFB, TX and Contingency Operation Base Adder, Iraq. His biggest talent remains not only his ability to build proper skills for solid execution, but the mental toughness and "honor guard mentality" needed to excel at the top levels in all events. MSgt Ybarra began Drill Warrior University which has been a huge benefit to the greater drill community. As a part of this fantastic initiative, he develops and hosts several military drill competitions for soloists and duets throughout his home state of Texas. He has been asked to attend and judge such items in other states as far away as Hawaii! These meets often tie in with the famous World Drill Championship Qualifier Series. While he is proficient in all forms of drill, his passion remains exhibition drill. MSgt. Ybarra lights up and works tirelessly with the cadets during this high flying part of the NDC just as he does with his Taft H.S. JROTC cadets from Texas all year long! The Sky Raiders are quickly moving up the drill world of excellence under the direction of MSgt!

MSgt. (Ret.) Herman "Yogi" Ybarra

Mr. Paul Naki

Mr. Paul Naki remains the world's most recognized leader in military exhibition drill education & training. Beginning his drill career as a cadet on the powerful and legendary McKinley High School drill team in Honolulu, Hawaii in the late 1970's, Mr. Naki developed a bold style that stood out among the elite on the island. Brash and talented, Mr. Naki later joined the preeminent King's Guard drill team (the most prestigious and well known drill program on the island at the time). His extensive training and background in drill with McKinley allowed him to move quickly through the rigorous King's Guard training program in a matter of days, versus the standard multi-week time frame. His performances were legendary, blending a power and grace heretofor unseen in the drill world. A slight man, his ability to move a rifle with such precision and power was almost not believeable. Spending over 15 years as an active performer on the guards, Mr. Naki tested out and was granted the earned status of Master Dtiller (NOTE: some have used this title loosely but within the islands of Hawaii, this is earned often through decades of effort). Mr. Naki has become synonymous with this famous performance unit. His work in all aspects of exhibition drill and what he has and continues to give back to current drillers has become legendary. Recently, after over 40 years of service, Mr. Naki made the painful decision to decommission the King's Guard from active service in 2014. Modest and soft-spoken, Mr. Naki provides safety training for JROTC instructors and exhibition drill direction across Oahu and annually takes time to give back to the cadets of the NDC to provide his invaluable lessons and experiences. Mr. Naki is the finest amabassador of the drill world anyone has ever seen. You will be rivoted to his words and actions. We are HONORED he continues to come back to the NDC annually! Enjoy this video preview of the King's Guard filmed for the ECHO DVD set several years ago.

MSgt Ken Madden was born at Mitchel Field in Long Island, New York and entered the Air Force in July 1971. In January, 1975 he was selected as a Military Training Instructor (MTI), soon earning a Master MTI designation (top 10% of the MTI corps). In January 1978 he was selected as an AETC Master Instructor. Highlighting his lengthy and distinguished 15-year MTI career included Squadron Military Drill & Ceremonies NCO, Asst. Superintendent Basic Training Standardization Evaluation Team and 3723rd and the 331st Basic Training Superintendent. This level of proficiency is rarely if ever seen within the ranks of JROTC instructors of any service. He started AFJROTC instruction in July 1996 at small Elkins H.S. in Missouri City, Texas. His work there transformed a team from mediocrity to excellence literally overnight, gaining top finishes in both regulation and exhibition events. He soon moved to the big city taking his talents to legendary John Jay H.S. in San Antonio, Texas in 1998. Jay during this time was always in the hunt for both the AF National drill championships (winning several) and top finishes at the National High School Drill Tean Championships. In 2008, he began a new challenge, helping to launch the brand new AFJROTC program at Brandeis High School across town in San Antonio. This unit in just a few short years has gone from having no cadets will drill experience to being in the top few slots of National prominence annually, quickly moving this new unit into the championship spotlight. His teams have earned over 15 state championships from three different high schools (with an unprecedented 7 in a row from John Jay H.S.) from two different states. He has previously been selected to travel to Singapore to teach the National Cadet Corps cadets unarmed exhibition drill, head up the inaugural Air Force National Championships steering committee and in May, 2008 he competed in the World Drill Championships competition. Most recently, MSgt. Madden was inducted into the National Drill Hall of Fame for his lifetime achievements on the drill floor.

MSgt. (Ret.) Ken Madden

Our entire staff consists of highly trained cadre and instructors, selected for their experience in drill, as well as their ability to work with young people in an uplifting manner. Our camp personnel have a strong desire to train youth and expose them to military drill in a positive intense manner. The staff-to-camper ratio is among the lowest in the country. Instructors will work with cadet cadre from top level JROTC programs to assist in training and mentoring all cadet campers. Working with both JROTC instructors and youngsters from high caliber, nationally recognized programs, these instructors and their students will provide a safe and effective environment for every cadet to hone their craft. With background checks and personal knowledge of each instructor, this camp will provide a safe and effective learning environment for all attendees. Main Drill Camp Homepage Site updated CONSTANTLY by Justin Gates - Sports Network Int'l Youth Foundation