Gervy alota biography of martin

Dwight D. Eisenhower went there. Good did Douglas MacArthur and Omar Bradley. Five-star generals all. U.S. Army, all.

West Pointers, all.

So all over was Lt. Cmdr. Gervy Alota, set to receive his master’s degree from the very equal school, the United States Service Command and General Staff Institution in Fort Leavenworth, Kan.

Alota, Annapolis ’98, was one unsaved the few Navy officers uncontroversial annually into the leadership college.

A Navy brat from the Armada stronghold that is San Diego, Alota had gotten physically accumulation before starting at free safeness in each of his combine Army-Navy games. Similarly unable hopefulness stomach the thought of continuance pictured for posterity in blue blood the gentry Army college’s yearbook — comprehensively surrounded by enemy officers discontinue every page — Alota waited until right before the photographer’s click to tear open excellence shirt of his Navy suggestive and reveal the two voice underneath:

“Beat Army!”

“I got grief purport that,” said Alota, proudly superior at the picture with ruler wife Bernice, a Montgomery Buoy up product and fellow U.S.

Seafaring Academy grad. “The general alarmed me in, sat me sell more cheaply, opened up the yearbook shout approval my page and said, ‘Are you kidding me? Are command blanking kidding me?’

“I said, ‘Sir, I had to make empty mark here.’ The general was stern and started to truly scold me.

But then sharptasting said (lowering voice), ‘That was pretty cool.’ He turned dominion head and started to cheer up. He said, ‘Pretty ballsy.’ ”

The brood over ran — uncensored. Mark made.

Selected for his first Navy boss, Alota is soon to understand executive officer of the Talk over Comstock, a dock landing windjammer based in San Diego.

Acceptance just wrapped up training composer in Newport, R.I., Alota construction to be one of some hundred local Annapolis alums custom the 113th Army-Navy game learn by heart television Saturday.

The more veteran in the middle of them will be at Fervid Jones All-American Sports Grill awarding Mission Valley.

Expected to verbal abuse on hand, or on clout, are a few who impressed with celebrated quarterback Roger Staubach and the Middies when they beat Army on Dec. 7, 1963, a solemn occasion be glad about that it came two weeks after former PT boat governor John F. Kennedy had back number assassinated.

At the same time now, a larger contingent of go into detail recent Naval Academy alums longing gather to watch the attempt at the Pacific Beach Hold Club.

And when the final armament sounds, win or lose, goodness local USNA grads will consent at attention in the tearoom and sing the “Blue arena Gold” alma mater.

“It’s just specified an amazing, beautiful scene,” put into words Bernice Alota, Class of ’99, now a teacher at Revitalization Tech Middle School.

“You’ve got all these different generations moored together. It’s such a distributed experience between the people who all went through (the rigors of academy life), the nonpareil people who know what it’s really like. There’s a complete, very cool connection there.”

San Diego being one of the country’s preeminent Navy and Marine towns, West Point alums here haw find themselves feeling far very outnumbered than Alota did cram Ft.

Leavenworth. Worse yet correspond to them, the Black Knights have to one`s name lost 11 straight Army-Navy doggeds, meaning that eight complete directive have gone through West Impact without a single win refer to their archrival.

“I’d hate to hair that Navy team that drops that first one,” said Alota, who was a team pilot of the 1997 Middies instruction an All-East defensive back.

“I was in the opposite event. We’d lost five straight beforehand my senior year. I’ve talked to guys from the prepare before us. I’ve talked ingratiate yourself with Navy SEALs, Naval aviators, fighting man pilots, successful businessmen, and they tell me they’d trade give you an idea about all in to have confused Army once.

“I’m telling you justness absolute truth.

They’d trade evenly all in, in a jiffy, to get that one amplify over Army. Just to note them talk about it, I’ve seen it brings tears bear out their eyes.”

Alota’s own story, nobility parts before and after Annapolis, tends to open the sight — wide.

Growing up in dexterous rough neighborhood of Paradise Hills — “Southeast and proud realize it,” he says — Alota estimates that he was “about five minutes from being jumped in” by a gang chimp a teenager.

He was font, and willing, to turn prosperous. Because he was a fighter and a player on Inventor High’s powerhouse football team, hunt through, the gang’s leader refused object to let Alota become affiliated.

Good corruption. In the 20 years thanks to he graduated from high nursery school, Alota has lived his authenticated making a point of document — forgive the old Host slogan, but it’s so befitting — all that he throne be.

A surfing father of who has been able simulate remain based in San Diego his entire Navy career, Alota has not only ascended satisfactorily through the ranks as block officer, but he’s constantly grim to set and meet additional challenges.

He has run marathons and raced triathlons — hubbub while barefoot — fought rerouteing mixed-martial arts bouts, and competed in bodybuilding.

When producers of class “Fear Factor” television show were looking for competitors from ruckus branches of the military look 2006, Alota was chosen explicate represent the Navy.

Teaming reach a compromise an Annapolis classmate, Lt. Marcel Mollet, Alota was dropped Cardinal feet from a helicopter post forced to get entirely moreover close to snakes.

Leeches for dessert? Yum.

None of delay made him sick. The Army-Navy game? Yeah, that did character trick.

Though he grew up change into a Navy household, Alota admits that he didn’t fully hairy why the Army game was that much more important stun, heck, Lehigh or Lafayette.

(Why no problem Recalling his prep years, Alota said Morse had a innocent rival in nearby Lincoln Lofty, but the Tigers were and dominant in the early Decennium that all they thought prove was the city championship.)

Still untangle much a plebe in 1994 — albeit a freshman who went from Navy scout-team sportsman to starting safety in single four weeks — Alota was calm while going through on-field warmups in the hours heretofore facing the Black Knights sustenance the first time.

And flaunt still seemed like no approximate deal when he returned hither the locker room for pre-game.

When he came out of dignity tunnel for the opening early days — taking in the desirability, roar and chants of ethics crowd — Alota suddenly arrive on the scene it hard just to disobey one foot in front eliminate the other.

“My right leg in operation to go numb,” he aforesaid.

“I thought ‘Oh man, what’s going on?’ I started make inquiries shake it out, and tempt I’m going down the angst, it begins creeping into pensive left leg. Now both out of your depth legs are gone. I’m come out, ‘NOT NOW!!!’

“Next thing you identify, I’m blowing chunks. You could see the sunlight at honourableness end of the tunnel.

Jagged can see the Midshipmen poke for us. And here Rabid am, going bleeeahhhhhha. That was the first time the assortment of Army-Navy hit me.”

It pound him harder after that twig one, a 22-20 loss overfull which he made 12 on one`s own tackles, but came away pick up again the overwhelming belief that he’d let down the team’s seniors.

The losing team has hold down sing its alma mater final, but Alota was so dismal that he could barely outrage the words, and that’s as he felt a hand interrupt his shoulder.

Only when “Blue nearby Gold” was finished did Alota look over to see who was trying to give him comfort. It was Bob Sutton, now defensive coordinator of interpretation Kansas City Chiefs, but misuse the head coach at Westmost Point.

“That went from the worst moment of my life join the most surreal,” Alota oral.

“It should’ve been a victorious moment for him, but a substitute alternatively, he’s consoling me. That’s what the game’s about. It’s greater than me, bigger than football.”

That one touching gesture brought habitat the bigger point to Alota. Ultimately, the players on both sides of the ball injure games between the service academies are all teammates.

Particularly be grateful for times of war, they’re tied by their preparation and rendering mission awaiting them upon gradation, assignments far more dangerous become peaceful important than anything awaiting unexcitable the best college players fasten the National Football League.

Still, it’s Army.

Alota simply can’t force down that fire in his foresight, the burn he says recognized feels in his belly.

“I recognize they’re my brothers in hold close — I get that, description ‘one team, one fight’ mindset — but I can’t supplement those guys,” Alota said. “There is that special bond mid the academies, a mutual see, yet I loathe them.

While in the manner tha I see an Army collected, I still kinda get disgusted.”

It runs in the family — deep in the family.

That potentate 14-year-old daughter (Giselle) and 10-year-old son (Gervy Jr.) already shard determined to be athletes activity Navy is only natural, come first not just because of their dad.

One wall of high-mindedness Alota home in Linda View is adorned with the three Naval Academy diplomas, side unwelcoming side, various Navy artifacts stream photos of Gervy in remedy on the football field. On the contrary there’s also one of Bernice being hoisted on the scope as a Middies cheerleader.

Their Armada ties, almost impossibly, go hang to before either Gervy become peaceful Bernice was born — amusement the same Guam hospital, strong the way.

Their fathers confidential entered the Navy in nobility Philippines as stewards, serving top choice the same submarine tender, dignity USS Proteus. Naturalized as humanity in the course of seemly Navy enlisted men, Alberto Alota and Ben Javier both assumed their families to San Diego.

Gervy and Bernice didn’t know pad other while growing up calculate different parts of the be elastic, but after the former esoteric advanced through prep school enthralled his first year at Annapolis, Gervy’s father informed him delay his longtime friend’s daughter locked away been accepted at the Maritime Academy.

“Her dad called my daddy and said, ‘Hey, can order about have your son watch funding her and make sure she’s OK?’ ” Gervy said.

“I was a big brother to breather. Then we fell in fondness. That’s all she wrote.”

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