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Ridgway native enjoying 'Awesome' experience |
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Saturday, 20 September 2008 |
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Photo submited Joseph Novario poses with youth he nicknamed the "Awesome" boys. Novario has spent 10 years in the Marines and have traveled all over the globe.
By Greg Reedy
Record Sports Editor
Major Joseph C. Novario has traveled all over the world as a part of the U.S. Military.
He fondly remembers his roots.
Novario grew up in Ridgway and now lives in Dumfries, Va., just outside of Washington, D.C. He has been in the Marine Corps for 10 years. He was stationed in Japan and Hawaii for six of those 10 years.
Growing up, Novario said his father remembered Novario saying he wanted to be an Army guy.
"My dad tells me that I wanted to be an 'Army guy' my whole life," Novario said. "Not sure why. I remember watching the military guys in parades as a kid and being attracted to the honor of it all. I also love being on a team that has a unity of focus and effort. It’s great to pull together to overcome unimaginable challenges. Also for the girls. I always thought girls would go for a man in the Marine Corps Dress Blue uniform."
His experience in the Marine Corps soon led him all over the world.
"The military paid for my college in Jacksonville, Fla. to start," Novario said. "Then I went to Quantico, Va., North Carolina, Hawaii, Korea, Australia, Hong Kong, Philippines, Cambodia, Indonesia, the coastal waters of Burma, Thailand, Iraq, Kuwait, Germany and the Netherlands. I have driven across the country four times, been to 42 states, and sailed on a Navy ship all over the Pacific Ocean."
While in Cambodia, Novario met a group which he labeled as "the Awesome Boys" in a small village named Kampong Cham.
"We flew about 100 miles from our ships into a Buddhist temple compound and provided medical and dental care to the citizens of this remote town," Novario said. "It was reachable by air and a river boat up the Mekong River so it was pretty isolated. I called these boys the 'Awesome Boys' because I taught them to say awesome. They helped me pick up litter in their compound in exchange for treats from our meals and shared some of their local treats also. By the way, Coke (Coca-Cola) is everywhere. As remote as this town was, they still had Coke in an ice cold bottle. A cold Coke in the middle of a developing country tastes better than I ever would have imagined."
Also in the village, Novario said he got to meet both younger and older monks. He especially enjoyed hanging out with the older monks.
"This guy was awesome," Novario said. "We hung out with him late at night when we ate our dinner. I once tried to share corn nuts with him, but he quickly and without language, showed me he had no teeth and therefore the corn nuts were of no value to him. I gave him my laser pointer that I use to give operation orders and other briefs with. He was overwhelmed by the small gift and we played with that laser for a long time."
In Indonesia, Novario struck friendships with Indonesian officers.
"We developed some great friendships with these guys and shared a lot of great ideas and culture over coffee each morning," Novario said. "They were just like us and working that close with them showed how similar people are despite all the things that divide us. That is true of the people I met all over the country and world."
Throughout his travels, Novario said growing up in Ridgway was highly beneficial to having success later on in life.
"It was good. Like most kids, I spent a good deal of time being bored, but I see now that growing up in a small town help to ground me," Novario said. "Not knowing what the world had to offer, I really wanted to go for it all. I always dreamed big, but was able to get the good foundation from my life in Ridgway. We were insulated by geography from a lot of what makes the world dangerous for adventurous teenagers. The community takes great care of its children.
"We certainly did our fair share of experimenting and made plenty of trouble, but we were allowed to push some limits without going too far. Nothing about growing up in Ridgway limited me in anything I wanted to do with my life. Meeting people from all walks of life and all different backgrounds has made me appreciate growing up where I did. For the most part, the dreams I had all came true. Don’t get me wrong, I worked hard and took some chances, but I knew I would be rewarded and that I had a safe place to fall back home."
A sense of teamwork and togetherness found in the Marine Corps was something found in Ridgway for Novario.
"For me, growing up here gave me experiences in the community, opportunities in education and extracurricular activities that I appreciated," Novario said. "In Ridgway, everyone knows you and everyone knows your parents. I can remember my mom busting me for stunts I wanted to pull even before I pulled them. She had a network. When I was causing trouble and doing teenage boy stuff, I hated that, but looking back on things I am glad that I had the entire community pulling for each other and each other's kids."
Other traits Novario said he learned from his days in Ridgway included leadership and self-confidence from playing sports.
"I had the opportunity to play multiple sports and the leadership and self-confidence I gained from that cannot be understated," Novario said. "We had fantastic coaches like Gary Gerber, Ben Zappa, Jim Aker and Steve 'Hacksaw' Wingate. They really let us excel and challenged us to be great team players. The lessons I learned on the fields and tracks of Elk County prepared me for the challenges I face all around the world in much more complex situations."
While Novario was learning and doing well in sports, he was also learning valuable life lessons in the classroom.
"The attention I got in high school and even before that was superb," Novario said. "The small classes and interwoven structure of things allowed us to advance in the ways that we could. Teachers knew each of our strengths and weaknesses and worked within them. We were treated very personally and I always appreciated feeling like the faculty and staff at Ridgway Area High School cared about us deeply. Mrs. Aiello, Mr. Buhite and others made each student feel important and wanted each of us to succeed."
Novario's mother is Jeanne Hall and stepfather is Bryce Hall. Novario's father is Tom Novario of DuBois. |
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 30 September 2008 )
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