Riley Anfinson started Chapter 1 of the next phase of his life last week.

A standout senior at Prescott High School, Anfinson is eagerly awaiting high school graduation. With that on hold, he forged ahead with the next leap: He formalizd his enlistment in the United States Army Thursday in a ceremony fittingly held at Veteran’s Memorial Park.

By joining the Army, Anfinson is getting a head start valued at $112,312 –that’s what the ceremonial big check said – on

See ANFINSON, Page 13

Photo by John McLoone. his education and military career. Along with his parents Jon and Laurel, friends and his very own film crew commemorating the occasion for Prescott High School’s virtual awards night ceremony, Anfinson was welcomed into the Army.

He took his United States military oath. Within minutes he went from Riley Anfinson, high school senior, to Private Anfinson.

Riley is doing some work this summer learning the Army way, and then heads to UW- River Falls in the fall where he plans to work on a business management degree. He gets one semester in and reports for basic training in January and then nine months of specialized training.

Anfinson is a Top 10 student at PHS and is a member of the National Honor Society. He excelled in sports at PHS and was a member of the football, basketball and baseball teams. His “film session” Thursday was initially set to be held at Firehall Field, but winds that any home run hitter would have loved forced the ceremony to be moved.

“Welcome to the Army team,” said Sgt. Olson, who noted that Anfinson will be trained as a multi-media illustrator in the army.

Riley said a phone call and meeting with recruiting staff sealed the deal for him.

“They asked if I was interested, and I never really thought of it before. I loved what I heard. It’s a great group of guys, and I love what they represent. I think what they’re doing is really special, and I want to be a part of it,” he said.

Riley’s father’s service also left a mark on him, and he’s excited to follow a similar path.

“He talked about it a lot, and it sounded really cool. He’s really passionate about it. He gave me a lot of encouragement,” Riley said of his father, who served in the National Guard.

Photo by John McLoone.

Riley Anfinson took his military oath in a brief ceremony Thursday that was filmed for the Prescott High School Awards Night ceremony, which will be held in an online format.