Sgt. First Class Andrew Zellar, center, was honored as a Hometown Hero at the Feb. 11 men's basketball game in the JMA Wireless Dome. With Zellar are (left to right): Vice Chancellor Mike Haynie; Director of Athletics John Wildhack; Zellar's daughter, Gabriella; wife, Gloriann, and son, Andrew Jr. (Photo by Charlie Poag)
Andrew Zellar’s 2 Decades of Shaping Lives Through Military Service
When Sgt. First Class Andrew Zellar began basic training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, on June 6, 2006, he thought he knew what his career in military service would look like.
Twenty years later, as he moves on from years as a military science instructor at Syracuse University and prepares to retire later this year from the New York Army National Guard, he reflects on a career that took unexpected turns and allowed him to impact hundreds of lives in ways he never imagined.
“The most unexpected part was the chance to have the assignment at ROTC. I had a vague understanding of what I would be doing, but my experience was a lot more rewarding than I expected,” Zellar says. “The thing I am most proud of is seeing past soldiers and cadets performing in the Army and in life.”
Zellar’s journey began like many of his generation, shaped by the events of Sept. 11, 2001. Fresh out of high school in 2004, the Cazenovia native wanted to serve, but his parents encouraged him to pursue college first.
After two years, the pull toward service won out. He enlisted in the Army National Guard as a military police officer, initially planning to combine service with the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC).
When plans to deploy overseas did not materialize, Zellar found himself in limbo—until an opportunity emerged that would define his career.
Finding His Calling in Recruiting
In 2007, during one of the most challenging periods for military recruiting, Zellar stepped into a role that would test every interpersonal skill he possessed. The economy was collapsing, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were intensifying, and the National Guard needed people who could connect with potential recruits and their families.
“Most people that join the military always have a desire to do it,” Zellar says. “It’s just that the opportunity to do it has to intersect with the motivation.”
He saw this firsthand at career fairs, where he met not teenagers but 25- and 30-year-old adults with impressive resumes who simply had no jobs. The 2008 economic crisis had created both challenges and opportunities for recruiting.
His approach was simple but demanding: show up.
“I probably failed more than I succeeded in a lot of things, but I would just show up,” he says. That first year, he worked every single day, meeting potential recruits whenever and wherever they needed—late nights, weekends, holidays.
His work in St. Lawrence County, located along New York’s northern border, juxtaposed recruiting Clarkson University, SUNY Potsdam, SUNY Canton and St. Lawrence University with the county’s rural residents.
One memory stands out in particular. Zellar visited a young man living in dire poverty—a home heated with wood pallets, with essentially nothing. “You need this. You got to get out of here,” he remembers thinking. The National Guard gave the young man a path forward.
The rural assignment taught Zellar invaluable lessons, sharpening his skills and deepening his understanding of how people struggle.
Preparing the Next Generation
In 2018, Zellar was chosen for a new role with the New York Army National Guard. He joined Syracuse University as a military science instructor with the Army ROTC program, a position that joined his recruiting expertise with a deeper mission of developing young leaders.
Over the next eight years, he worked with more than 325 cadets and contributed to the commissioning of 215 Army second lieutenants.
“The thing I’ll look back on and enjoy the most is watching them achieve what they’re capable of achieving,” Zellar says. He remembers helping a cadet, an Iraqi refugee, obtain her citizenship, presenting her with a pocket Constitution at the ceremony.
His teaching philosophy challenges students to expand their perspectives.
“Whatever news source you get, whatever stuff you like to read, read the opposite,” he tells first-year students. “Just for no other reason than to see something a little bit different.”
His advice extends beyond tactics and strategy. “Swing at the pitch. If you get an opportunity, you can strike out. I’ll deal with it. We will figure it out. But nothing’s worse than watching the pitch go by,” he says.
A Legacy Beyond the Uniform
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Zellar and his ROTC colleagues proved indispensable, running testing sites and helping keep the University operational. It exemplified what he values most about service: being there when it matters.
As Zellar retires from military service later this year, he leaves behind more than statistics. He leaves young officers commissioned and ready to lead, recruits who found purpose and opportunity, and countless individuals whose lives changed because one person was willing to show up every time, without fail.
As he moves forward, Zellar will continue to pursue his real estate career. And he is looking forward to spending more time on what matters most: his wife Gloriann, daughters Audrey and Gabriella, and son Andrew Jr.
