From the armed forces
• Eric A. Petrocelli has been commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army after successfully completing the Army Reserve Officer Training Corps program and graduating with a bachelor's degree from Western Illinois University, Macomb.
Petrocelli will be branched to a specific corps in the Army to serve on active duty or in the National Guard or Reserve. The lieutenant will attend an officer basic course relating to his particular military occupational specialty/job. Afterward, he will complete advanced training by attending basic officer leadership courses for career progression purposes.
The ROTC curriculum prepares students with the tools, training and experiences to help them succeed as effective leaders in any competitive environment. Army officers serve as leaders, counselors, strategists and motivators, who lead other soldiers in all situations occurring in ever-changing environments.
Petrocelli is the son of Rick P. and Kathi J. Petrocelly of Mundelein. In 2004, the lieutenant graduated from Carmel Catholic High School in Mundelein.
• Marine Corps Pfc. Gabriel A. Rivera, a 2007 graduate of Warren Township High School in Gurnee, recently graduated from the Basic Preservation and Packaging course while assigned as a student to Marine Corps Combat Service Support Schools, Camp Lejeune, N. C.
Throughout the course Rivera and his fellow students were introduced to all basic aspects of military packaging and preservation. These included methods of preservation, shipment and packing of hazardous materials, and an introduction to forklift training and safety procedures. Upon completion of the course, Rivera earned the qualification to pack and ship a wide variety of Marine Corps supplies and equipment for immediate and future use.
Rivera joined the Marine Corps in January 2007.
• Army 2nd Lt. Richard D. Kim has graduated from the Army Basic Officer Leader Course at Fort Benning, Columbus, Ga.
The training is designed to ensure a tough, standardized, small-unit leadership experience for officers. The primary mission of the course is to develop and produce adaptive officers with increased maturity, confidence and competence that share a common bond with their combined arms peers and are prepared to lead small units upon arrival at their first assignment.
Kim, an infantry officer, is assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 11th Infantry Regiment, Fort Benning.
He is the son of John H. and Dal S. Kim of Long Grove. He is a 2003 graduate of Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire and received a bachelor's degree in 2007 from Penn State University.