Ryan Carter
Hoping to lure a new generation of recruits into military service,
the U.S. Army has opened a recruiting center in Burbank.
Army officials including Brigadier Gen. Bernardo C. Negrete -- the
deputy Commanding General of the United States Army Recruiting
Command -- local dignitaries, veterans and a small crowd converged
outside the Burbank Recruiting Center in the Media City Center on
Tuesday to celebrate its grand opening.
Negrete told the more than 50 people gathered outside the center
on the third level next to Sears that as the specter of war loomed
over the nation, the recruiting center and its four recruiters were
pivotal.
Local officials also envisioned a center with dual benefits.
"This a major part of the revitalization of the mall," Mayor David
Laurell said.
But he added that because the mall attracts teenagers and young
adults, "You never know when something here [at the center] might
strike them, and they say to themselves 'Hey, maybe this is an option
for me.' "
Officials said the center, which caters to Army and Navy
applicants, is an outgrowth of recent surges in recruitment into the
military.
"The opening of the center is significant because in the past
three years we've seen an increase in the number of people wanting to
enlist from the Burbank area compared to others," said Staff Sgt.
Paul Rivera, a station commander at the new center.
He said the surge goes beyond the patriotism that draped the
nation after Sept. 11.
"I think it has a lot to do with the opportunities the Army has to
offer," he said, noting there are opportunities to work in everything
from the medical field to communications.
The new center joins seven recruiting centers in the San Fernando
Recruiting Co. and 56 throughout Los Angeles County area.
A center that caters to all branches of military service is in
Glendale.
The center is in the Media City Center at 201 E. Magnolia Blvd.
For more information, call 843-3881.
