United States Army veteran and Syracuse University Army ROTC Cadet Ryan Yon is from Clemson, South Carolina. In August 2017, he enlisted in the United States Army after reading the book Wild at Heart by John Eldredge. A passage from the book inspired Ryan to enlist which reads: “Deep in his heart, every man longs for a battle to fight, an adventure to live, and something to rescue.” Ryan finished the book on his break, immediately drove to the recruiter’s office and enlisted, and told his supervisor he will be leaving and never coming back.
Ryan attended Basic Combat Training and U.S. Army Dive School at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri followed by Advanced Individual Training (AIT) to become a 91 Bravo, Wheeled Vehicle Mechanic at Fort Lee, Virginia. After completing AIT, Ryan’s first duty assignment was in the 514th Maintenance Company of the 548th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion in the 10th Mountain Division at Fort Drum, New York. While stationed at Fort Drum, he had the opportunity to support relief efforts during Hurricane Florence in 2018 and the 2019 California Wildfires. Ryan also prepared his units for their upcoming deployments in Iraq during Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR).
During Ryan’s three years on active duty, his goal was to compete and be selected for the 10th Mountain Division Commander’s “Green to Gold” Hip-Pocket Scholarship. In May of 2019, Ryan was selected by the Commanding General of the 10th Mountain Division at Fort Drum to receive a scholarship and attend Syracuse University.
Since arriving at Syracuse University as a first-generation college student, Ryan is a member of the Syracuse University cheer, swim, and water-polo teams. He has attended national conferences for veterans as well as science and engineering. Ryan is on course graduate to graduate in 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in Policy Studies from the Maxwell School and earn his commission in the United States Army.
