Sgt. 1st Class David Moore loves his country, his family and Mississippi State.
"My main mission is to recruit for the Army National Guard," said the former Leake County resident. "I'm responsible for getting new officers in and new officers out for both the Army National Guard and for Mississippi State's Army ROTC. I get to mentor, counsel and advise these students and watch them go from cadet to commission."
In other words, Moore goes from training cadets to saluting them when they become officers.
"I get to see the fruits of my labor: I see students that don't know what direction they're going and we give them military training," he explained. "They learn self-discipline and leadership, and when they apply that to their lives, it makes them awesome people, too."
Since Mississippi State's ROTC program pays for their college education, ROTC students can graduate debt-free and have the advantage of having military experience on their resumes, Moore said.
"Most employers will move an ROTC student's resume from the middle or bottom to the top, and being a member of the military is one of the most well respected jobs in the nation," he said. "Mississippi State's R.O.T.C. program is really strong."
Moore first came to Starkville in 2002 when his wife, Lynda, was hired by the university's athletic academic support-services office. He had just enough time to unload the moving truck before he was deployed to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He didn't even have time to move the furniture into the house.
When he returned two years later, Moore realized his family was living in a great place to work, learn and grow.
"We love it here in Starkville," he said. "It's the only place our children really know, and they've threatened to live with friends if we tried to move."
The Moores have four children: Rylan, 15; Corey, 13; Tanner, 11; and Lillie, 4. The young men are members of the National Honor Society, and Moore said he looks forward having Lillie join them as she goes through school.
When not working at Mississippi State, Moore often is busy with soccer since the children play in the local recreational leagues.
While he loves Bulldog baseball and football, Moore said he continues to hope Mississippi State will add men's soccer team to the sports program and join the women's team already in place. Until then, he said he'll continue heading to games at Polk-Dement Stadium at Dudy Noble Field and Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field.
"I've been a State fan for many years," he said. "Mississippi State is down-to-earth, and the students and the people are so friendly. I'm from Carthage, Mississippi, and Mississippi State people are my type of people."