51¶ÌÊÓƵ

Seventy-five years ago, Ray Coffey graduated first in his class from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Army ROTC program. On Friday, his grandson followed in his footsteps and did the same.

"I'm excited to see a lot of chapters closing and a lot of doors opening," senior Jordan Coffey said. "It feels like I'm a part of something bigger than myself, which is the story of being in the Army, and I can't be thankful enough for that but then to also have the support and legacy that my family's been a part of, it's an honor."

Jordan Coffey said there was no singular moment where he knew this was what he wanted to do — it was a culmination of little moments over the years. 

"I didn't know what I wanted out of the Army when I first joined ROTC my freshman year," he said. "I didn't contract until my sophomore year, so before that I could've dropped it at any time. But as I spent more time in the program and met the people in my class, I was motivated again and again to be better and that's so instrumental to where I am today."

In the years between the two graduates, Jordan Coffey's father and two uncles also graduated from the Army ROTC program at UNL and another uncle enlisted as a soldier in the Nebraska Army National Guard.

"We have quite the military history and I'm thrilled to continue to be a part of it," Jordan Coffey said. "In our family, service is important and it's gratifying to carry that mantle now."

When he walked across the stage Friday evening, he did so as a commissioned officer and ranked among the top 2% of all graduating ROTC cadets nationwide.

A commissioned officer is a military officer who has achieved a rank before officially assuming their role, holding higher authority than a non-commissioned officer.

"I don't really belong in the same company as my dad and my son," Greg Coffey, Jordan's father, said. "I see so much of my dad in my son — my dad was kind, he was gentle, he was strong and incredibly hardworking. And that's what Jordan is."

Although Ray Coffey passed away in 2009, when Jordan was only 8 years old, the graduate continues to look up to his grandfather.

"Everything I know about my grandfather has been instilled into me by my father," Jordan Coffey said. "I grew up hearing about all these great things he had done for our family and our nation, and I found that selfless service and determination inspiring."

Greg Coffey, holding back tears, said Jordan inspires the same feeling in him.

"I am so incredibly proud of him," Greg Coffey said.

Jordan's uncle, Doug Coffey, swore him in during UNL's Army ROTC graduation ceremony Friday, administering the Oath of Office and awarding him the Major Dan C. Kingman Memorial Award for Superior ROTC performance, named in honor of a Nebraska ROTC graduate who was killed in action in Vietnam.

Doug Coffey graduated from Nebraska and received his commission in 1972. He spent 26 years in active service to the Army, before retiring as a Colonel in 1998.

Following the service, the Coffey family gathered at Ray Coffey's memorial tree outside UNL's Pershing Military & Naval Science Building to recreate a photo of Greg Coffey and his brothers with their father in the 1980s.

Jordan has been assigned to the Infantry branch and will soon leave Lincoln for Fort Benning to attend the Infantry Basic Officer Leader Course, after which he will be sent to Ranger School and Airborne school before moving onto his first duty station.