Archive for July, 2010
FMFM 4-4 Engineer Operations
FMFM 4-4 Engineer Operations
FMFM 4-4 Engineer Operations ? File 1
This manual sets forth the doctrine, tactics, and techniques to be employed in engineer operations and training within the Fleet Marine Forces. It covers the mission, organization, and principles of employment of engineer units in support of Fleet Marine Forces in amphibious operations and subsequent operations ashore.
FMFM 3-3 Helicopterborne Operations
FMFM 3-3 Helicopterborne Operations
FMFM 3-3 Helicopterborne Operations File 1
This manual sets forth the doctrine, tactics, and techniques to be employed in helicopterborne operations and training within the Fleet Marine Forces. This manual also covers the organization and principles of employment of helicopter and helicopterborne units.
FMFM 2-1 Intelligence
FMFM 2-1 Intelligence
This manual sets forth information and guidance concerning the planning and execution of intelligence activities within the Marine Corps. It addresses intelligence staff organizations, functions, and responsibilities, including the direction, collection, processing, and dissemination of intelligence. (continue reading…)
FMFM 1-1 Campaigning
FMFM 1-1 Campaigning
FMFM 1-1 Campaigning ? File 1
This manual is about military campaigning. A campaign is a series of related military actions undertaken over a period of time to achieve a specific objective within a given region.
FMFM 1 Warfighting
FMFM 1 Warfighting
To understand the Marine Corps’ philosophy of warfighting, we first need an appreciation for the nature of war itself?its moral and physical characteristics and demands. A common view among Marines of the nature of war is a necessary base for the development of a cohesive doctrine. This manual provides the authoritative basis for how Marines fight and how they prepare to fight.
Why Do Marines Drill?
Why do Marines drill?
There are perhaps no other services in the world more proud of their service than Marines.
Just ask them.
They have their own language, sharp uniforms and snazzy commercials. Before equality became formality in the U.S. armed forces, they developed catchy slogans that clued in on how separate they viewed themselves.
�A few good men.�
�The few, the proud, the Marines.�
Marines like to look good and want everyone to take notice. Even when they walk together in groups.
A civilian would call it marching. They call it drill.
When a Marine begins his first days at boot camp, he is taught everything all over again. As if his parents did not do a good job of teaching him to walk, talk, cloth, and feed himself, his new daddy is quick to provide instruction.
Perhaps none of the above instructions are more important than drill.
At first, Marines are filed into platoon formations, looking like green eggs staked neatly in a carton. They begin to master the �box.� Then they �slime� their way around the depot; a gaggle of geese ditty bopping to the familiar sounds of their drill instructor�s voice. Eventually they are taught the simpler drill movements: Position of attention, saluting, left and right faces.
Perhaps the most important is putting their feet in front of the other in unison. This might sound like a hard thing to do, but when there are 50 or more people trying to be on the same page, things get complicated.
Evolution of footwear is also an important step to understanding Marine drill.
Marines are first required to wear sneakers with their camouflaged utilities. Here the basic drill movements are repeated until Marine have a fair understanding of what are basic drill movements. Their pant legs are rolled down and cuffed like a kindergartner wearing his older brother�s jeans.
But then they are issued combat boots. This is like handing a drummer a set of really good sticks. They roll their trousers over their boots and blouse them with green elastic cords. Now the young Marines have reached a new goal. Now the Marines are expected to bring what drill instructors call �thunder.�
After long days under the grueling heat and sand fleas of Paris Island or roaring jet engines of a nearby airport of San Diego, the recruits have grasped the understanding of drill. While they might not be masters, they do gain confidence and discipline through a memorized routine.
What the Marines like to call �instant obedience to orders.�
It is through drill that Marines at any rank can go back to the basics. A junior Marine leading a platoon formation is something to be admired in the Corps when a senior Marine is expected.
Drill is used as confidence builder in this instance. Much like civilians with a fear of public speaking, putting a young Marine in front of a platoon of his peers can be slightly uncomfortable. They mumble or stutter their commands, loose focus, and generally do a bad job. Any resemblance of the confident Marine on the boot camp grinder is gone. After some remedial instruction, and egging on by the drill�ees, the young Marine gains confidence. Soon, he�s barking orders and singing cadence like a hard-nosed, barreled-chested, square-jawed drill instructor. Like a Marine.
And is this why Marines drill.
What are the legal requirements to joining the Marines?
Is Recruit Training hard?
Yes. Recruit Training will be one of the most physically and mentally challenging experiences of your life. But it is not impossible. The sense of accomplishment upon completing training is very rewarding and worthwhile.
Is abuse tolerated in the Marines?
How Do I Contact a Recruit
During the first two weeks of recruit training, recruits will send home a letter stating they?ve made it to MCRD San Diego or Parris Island and will provide an address for which to receive mail.
Here is an example of an address for recruit mail from MCRD San Diego:
Recruit John E. Doe
1st BN, Alpha Co. PLT _ _ _ _
36001 Midway Ave
San Diego, CA 92140 – (plus platoon #)
EMERGENCIES
If a message is required to notify a recruit of an emergency situation at any time during recruit training, please contact your local American Red Cross or please visit the American Red Cross Emergency Communication Services web page, to have an official message sent to either MCRD San Diego or Parris Island. In order to process the message quickly, please provide the recruit’s name, social security number, company and platoon.
Who Makes a Marine a Rifleman
?Lightweight, air-cooled, gas-operated, magazine-fed, shoulder-fired assault weapon,? these words are embedded in the minds of all Marines. It is the textbook description of the weapon used by modern-day Marines.
The M-16 A4, an upgraded version of the eight pound weapon adopted by the Marine Corps as the standard issue assault rifle in 1983, is useless without trained individuals to properly use it. Marines like Sgt. Michael A. Hauck ensure every rifle is in skilled hands.
Hauck, the platoon sergeant for Wire Platoon, Communications Company, Headquarters Battalion, has taught Marines how to improve their shooting skills as a primary marksmanship instructor since 2003.
The Operation Iraqi Freedom veteran was introduced to firing a weapon in basic training, and fell in love with it.
?I love instructing because I am helping Marines advance in their careers,? Hauck said.
Teaching Marines how to fire more accurately eventually gave Hauck the desire to improve his own skills and led to him join a competitive shooting team.
His first exposure to competitive marksmanship was while stationed in Okinawa, where he competed on the Combat Assault Battalion intramural team. Hauck credits his success to the fact that before the Corps, he never shot a weapon.
?I was like a sponge in bootcamp, soaking up all my teachers had to give me. That?s what made me the platoon high shooter,? the Arlington, Texas native said.
From the first day in basic training, Marines are taught the importance of discipline in everything they do. Marksmanship is no exception.
?Discipline is everything,? said the 1998 Noland Catholic High School graduate. ?It takes extreme discipline to hold these uncomfortable positions, to not jerk the trigger, to look at the front sight post when it?s so easy to focus on the target instead.?
Hauck earned ?Coach of the Week? for his outstanding performance as a marksmanship instructor during the week of Aug. 14 through 18. He compared watching the Marines he coached do well on qualification day, to the look on a child?s face Christmas morning.
?When you see that Marine get expert for the first time, it makes you feel like you just gave them an early Christmas present,? he said.
Santa?s reward for his gifts is milk and cookies, but Hauck receives something he cherishes much more, chevrons.
It is a tradition when shooters either score an expert rating for the first time, or believe their coach helped them score high enough to rate it again, they give the coach one of their rank insignia. Hauck places the chevrons of memorable shooters on the daypack he uses at the rifle range and the rest go into a jar he keeps at his house.
?He helped me a lot,? said Cpl. Nancy E. Burchell, a Marine with Headquarters Company. ?I was having trouble with my stance, and I used to box, so he told me to view it as a boxing match. I shot the best I?ve ever shot.?
Hauck said he looks forward to helping Marines in the future, and hopes to join more competitive shooting teams.
At the end of qualification day, the sun beat down on the 93 Headquarters Company Marines as they left the rifle range and headed toward the bus. Hauck reached into his pocket for his ?milk and cookies,? – three lieutenant bars, three sergeant chevrons, and a Navy ?RP? rate insignia.
What bootcamp will be like with a twin?
“Recruit Wombles times two!” yelled the drill instructor as two heads popped up simultaneously. Acknowledging the call, they both rose to their feet and ran to the front of the barracks.
Cody L. and Kyle D. Wombles grew up in the small town of Pleasant Hill, Ill. Living in a town with less than 1,000 people, the two Company F recruits welcomed the idea of being identical twins in a new, ethnically diverse environment with new experiences.
Said Cody: “The only way our drill instructors can tell us apart is by the … ”
” … mole on my face,” said Kyle, finishing his twin’s thought.
They take turns finishing each other’s sentences, and they do it frequently.
“Other recruits in the platoon always tells us how lucky we are and how they wish that their brothers could be here training with them,” said Kyle.
Taking on the challenge of joining the military was an ambition the twins shared as young boys.
“We decided on the Marines because it looked like it was the hardest,” said Kyle as Cody nodded his head in agreement. “Our mother didn’t want us to go, but we told her when we turned 18 we were going to join.”
“They probably put it mildly,” said their mom Cheryl Wombles about their choice.
After the several discussions and heated words that the family shared, she ultimately found herself supporting their decision to join.
“Kyle didn’t voice his opinion to want to leave Illinois as much as Cody, but they both want to see different things,” said Cheryl.
A year of persuasion helped the twins, who were born on Dec. 17, 1986, to get their mother to sign the parental consent form to allow them to join at 17.
“She signed our papers and we asked our recruiter to get us to go as soon as possible,” said Cody.
“But he didn’t have any open spots until after the summer,” said Kyle.
Putting themselves on the waiting list for open spots, the two did encounter an opening, but for only one of them.
“At first I was ready to take it,” said Cody. “Then I realized it wasn’t enough time to say goodbye to everyone, so I passed it up.”
In early August, the twins finally made it into boot camp as infantrymen.
Having each other to rely on during training has helped them to excel and make it through. In a letter that Cheryl received from Kyle, she believed that he was becoming homesick and needed reassurance
“I told him that he needed to buck up and take it like a man,” said Cheryl. “I also told his brother to look out for him, which makes me look hard, but I knew they would be fine.”
The twins followed their mother’s guidance and did well throughout training.
“They are basically joined at the hip,” said Sgt. Jefferson A. Rivas, Platoon 2126, Co. F drill instructor. “Whenever one reports for something, instead of picking them apart they both come up.”
Showing their drill instructors that they have no problems getting through training, both recruits averaged about the same score on almost every competitive event.
“Every time we went through the obstacle course, the drill instructors would make us race one another,” said Kyle.
“Most of the time we were pretty even, but occasionally I beat my brother,” finished Cody.
The twins’ kindred mind set made boot camp easier to bear.
“When the drill instructors would count down to get us to do things quickly, other recruits were digging through their stuff to look for what was asked,” said Kyle. “My brother and I would be much further ahead of everyone else because without a word my brother would have what I needed or I would have what he needed.”
Doing everything alike in a place where conformity is comfortable only helped the twins excel with no problems except for small heckling.
“During chow, the drill instructors would ask the second one of us why we were in line trying to get seconds,” said Kyle.
Having completed the first part of their journey in the military, the Wombles twins look forward to the School of Infantry and a chance to see more of the world.
USMC Family Day
Family Day, the day before recruit graduation, is a time allotted for recruits to sport around the depot in their new Marine Corps issued uniforms and haircuts after they receive their eagle, globe and anchor emblems.
This is the only day in training where recruits and their visitors may walk the depot freely with few restrictions placed by drill instructors. On this day, recruits will have their final physical training session as a company and receive their eagle, globe and anchors, making them Marines.
The first thing many visitors see is their loved one practicing in the early morning for the following day?s graduation.
Until 9 a.m., recruits do not give any attention to the families observing them; only at the motivational run will recruits be able to face the visitors, after receiving the order ?left face? from their senior drill instructors.
Not being able to see his step son for more than eight months, Leroy Heinrich saw him for the first time April 6 at India Company?s motivational run, which was held prior to the Eagle, Globe and Anchor Ceremony.
Many parents were flabbergasted at the changes that took place while their loved ones were in training.
?His whole attitude, his whole being has changed,? said Heinrich, Pfc. Noah Hardt?s step-father. ?We can see it in his letters. We saw it happen here.?
Though proud their family members are graduating, some are skeptical at first. Because the United States is a nation at war, a few mothers have been apprehensive to send their sons to boot camp.
Ken Kypietz said Hardt?s mother, Corrine Hardt, didn?t want to see her son leave for training. Since seeing him in his Marine Corps service ?C? uniform, Corrine fears have turned to pride in her son?s accomplishments, according to Kypietz.
At the conclusion of the moto run, families gathered in front of McDougal Hall, the depot theater, where Brig. Gen. John M. Paxton Jr., commanding general, MCRD San Diego and the Western Recruiting Region, acknowledged recruits for their efforts and recognized their families for raising men who would volunteer for the duties that distinguish a Marine.
Following the moto run, recruits cleaned up while family members moved to the theater to watch recruit training video to get better understanding of what their loved ones experienced at boot camp.
Shortly after the video, visitors gathered on the bleachers at Shepherd Memorial Drill Field where they witnessed their recruit turn into a Marine during the Eagle, Globe and Anchor Ceremony. After the ceremony, recruits spent time with their visitors until 5 p.m.
One of the recruits who received his Marine Corps emblem and was set free for the day didn?t have any visitors who could make it to his graduation. Even though he didn?t have any visitors, he was elated to have some time to himself.
?I was on cloud nine,? said Pvt. Tebuteb Sidro. Because Sidro?s family is from Saipan, they were not able to fly out for his graduation, but Sidro spent his liberty calling friends and family. Sidro flew home after graduation to see his family in Saipan.
Marines welcome visitors and families to take part in Family Days and recruit graduation ceremonies throughout the year.
USMC Choking Techniques
Recruit Wayne Robinson, Platoon 3073, M Company, cringed when Sgt. Oliver Schiess wrapped him in a python-like blood choke.
“When he squeezed, I felt tingling around my brain,” said Robinson, red in the face. “I got really light headed.”
To perform a rear choke, the choker wraps his bicep and forearm around the opponent’s neck, clasps his hands together and squeezes. The figure-4 variation is a similar move, except the hand on the choking arm is placed on the opposite bicep, and the other hand goes behind the opponent’s head.
These two chokes are in a category called blood chokes, which means pressure on the carotid artery stops blood from flowing to the brain. Air chokes, which block breathing, are another story.
“We teach blood chokes because they incapacitate the enemy faster,” said Taylor. “A blood choke usually takes eight to 13 seconds to work, but an air choke takes between 30 seconds and one minute usually.”
A blood choke’s speediness becomes viable in any combat situation, said Taylor, but especially when fighting multiple opponents.
“It’s much better to incapacitate someone in eight seconds than to fight another attacker off for a minute while you wait for the air choke to work,” said Taylor.
Before the recruits take on the chokes, instructors give a safety brief and demonstration, and the recruits must slowly practice “by the numbers.” Once off the number system, recruits go live with the choking. For training purposes, they apply slow, steady pressure to their opponents’ necks. This would not be the case in actual combat.
We apply slow pressure in training because a jolting, crushing squeeze could collapse the trachea,” said Taylor. “But in combat, a jolting squeeze is ideal.”
If a recruit feels endangered by a constricting arm around his neck, he can safeguard himself with a tap.
“When we teach any chokes or holds, the tap-out rule always applies,” said Taylor.
In accordance with this rule, the choke victim can yell “Tap tap tap!” when the pressure sets in, or he can tap his body or the choker’s body with his hand, like in professional wrestling. Another precaution ITC experts take is that recruits aren’t allowed to hold the choke for more than five seconds.
Drill instructors keep close eyes on the training and walk through the ranks to ensure recruits are following the safety rules.
Transformation into Marines – Receiving
Eighteen unnaturally quiet individuals sit motionless as their clothes gather pools of nervous sweat, which echoes their unanimous belief that they made a terrible mistake. Questions such as, “What have you done?” and “When can we leave?” occupy their thoughts, while the driver smiles as if he enjoys their trepidation.
The bus slices through the primal darkness and blinding fog like an osprey with a tail wind. The passengers sense that their conveyance thrives on fear and relishes haste.
Thirteen weeks from now they will laugh, recalling their first hours on the island with a smile, but 13 weeks is 91 days and 91 days can seem like an eternity at 2 a.m.
As the bus jerks to a halt, the four tires and 18 hearts stop. The front door folds open and the silence screams “run.”
Confident footsteps are heard approaching as the most intimidating person the young men have ever seen enters the bus like a statue on wheels. “Get off my bus,” screams Mr. Strangehat. For a second no one moves, as if salvation lies within their dampened seats.
Recruiting commercials and fire breathing monsters dance through their heads, as their new friend shows no signs of slowing down or shutting up. The confused passengers stumble into the moonlit street to find another statue directing them to stand on sets of yellow footprints that are worn from years of devil pups’ first steps.
Transformation begins here
Their stomachs twist and turn as the bus rolls to a halt in front of the yellow footprints. They are dead silent. The recruits are just moments away from the inevitable collision of civilian and drill instructor.
The turbulent transformation begins when they step onto the yellow footprints, and a drill instructor begins his speech with a simple greeting, “Congratulations on your decision to become a United States Marine. It is a decision you will never regret.”
They make their way through a one-way door adorned with the infamous eagle, globe and anchor. That is where the recruits take their first steps of the training they signed up for.
Their minds are blank as they turn on auto pilot. When told to do something, they seem to do it without thinking.
The hard-learned lessons of the Corps are beginning to soak into their minds.
As their time at receiving begins to slowly creep into the early morning hours, they have already had a haircut, been given nearly all of their gear and are beginning to show signs of sleep deprivation. This is when they will be given the chance to put on their Marine Pattern camouflage utility uniforms for the first time.
Finally, their second day on Parris Island is here. However, the week-long process is not complete, they still have medical in-processing and field gear issue to undergo before their training cycle begins.
Times have boot Marines heading to combat
Private First Class Chad A. Brown, 18, of Nederland, Texas, and more than 30 other fellow leathernecks of 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division are prime examples. They checked into the battalion here Jan. 10 as riflemen and learned their new unit is deploying to Ar Ramadi, Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom the end of February.
After attending Marine Corps Recruit Training and receiving more advanced training at the School of Infantry, Brown will soon find himself in combat and have to rely on the war fighting skills he so recently learned.
“It’s nerve raking because I don’t know what to expect,” said the young freckled faced fair skinned Marine who enlisted a day after turning 17. He needed his parents to sign legal consent papers.
Brown said he is in good spirits despite the deployment and the risks it brings. He’s motivated and welcomes the fact that he’ll soon be doing what he’s spent the last six months training for – fighting.
“I joined the Marines for the title, and to support my family,” said the newlywed and father of a five-month-old daughter. “I’ll get to spend at least six months with my family when I get back, before I have to deploy again.”
According to Staff Sgt. Javier L Vega Jr., 29, of Oceanside, Calif., and platoon sergeant for 3rd Platoon, Weapon’s Company, Marines like Brown are ready.
“It’s a bonus being fresh out of SOI because they have quick obedience to orders,” Vega said. “Since day one (of their infantry career), they have been preparing for war. They have the ability.”
Vega said their time in a combat theater should sharpen their skill by forcing them to make decisions on their own.
He also offers encouragement to the new Marines by reminding them of the battalion’s history in Iraq. The upcoming deployment will be the second and, for some Marines, the third time to go there. “This is a combat experienced unit.”
Vega also said the new Marines won’t be thrown into the mix right away, but be supplemented instead.
“We will give them simple missions at first,” he said. “As their skills grow, so will their responsibilities with us.”
The Importance of Gear
The 3rd Mobile Assault Platoon took sniper fire all day as they conducted a relief in place with 1st Mobile Assault Platoon.
As Lacey Springs, Ala., native Lance Cpl. Bradley A. Snipes, antitank assault man, 3rd MAP, Weapons Company, 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, sat in the turret of his hummer watching his assigned sector behind his M-2 .50 caliber machine gun, it happened.
?We were doing a relief in place with [1st MAP] and had been taking sniper fire across the wadi all day,? Snipes, the 21-year-old, 2002 graduate of Brewer High School, said. ?I was sitting in defilade, just my head above the turret when it felt like someone hit me in the head with a baseball bat.?
The sniper had shot Snipes square in the side of his head, hitting him directly in his Kevlar helmet.
?I was in shock, I didn?t know what happened. I remember thinking ?Am I still here??? he said.
Snipes dropped down in the turret. It was at that point he realized he was, in fact, still with the living thanks to his helmet. While inside the cab of the hummer, another shot tore through one of the handgrips of his .50 caliber machine gun, partially shattering it. The sniper then began focusing on the vehicles tires.
After a moment, he composed himself and raised his 5-foot-11-inch frame back up into the turret to engage the sniper with his machine gun.
According to Cambridge, Ohio native 1st Lt. Jeremy S. Wilkinson, platoon commander, 3rd MAP, his own platoon?s organic firepower and a 500-pound bomb from overhead air support eventually silenced the sniper.
Bradley Snipes? life, though, was saved by his gear.
?I was really surprised. It?s supposed to be able to stop a 7.62mm round at long distances. Well, it did,? he said. ?The gear works, don?t doubt it. This is proof.?
Currently, Snipes, who is a veteran of combat operations in Afghanistan, is trying to keep his helmet as a memento.
?I want to put it in a case with a plaque that says ?The little bullet that couldn?t.??
Teenager Keeping Weapons in Check
While many 19-year-olds juggle a busy college class load or their first part-time job back in the United States, one peer carries the responsibility of ensuring his battalion?s weapons are prepared for battle here.
?It is an awesome responsibility,? said Lance Cpl. Christopher Ruiz, 19, battalion armorer, Headquarters and Service Company, 3rd Radio Battalion, II Marine Expeditionary Force (FWD). ?I don?t know too many 19-year-olds back home who can say the same thing about what they are doing.?
Ruiz, whose unit is based out of Marine Corps Base, Hawaii, has been in Iraq since May and is responsible for the battalion?s weapon arsenal.
?I am a one-man shop,? he said. ?But, I like having the responsibility. I ensure all the weapons are in proper working condition. If they don?t work when they need to someone?s life could be in jeopardy.?
According to his staff noncommissioned officer, he carries the responsibility well.
?We have our battalion spread out from here to Husaybah, near the Syrian border,? said Gunnery Sgt. Kent D. Cartmill, S-4 chief and native of Garden City, Kan. ?He is responsible for all the weapons. If there is a problem at another base, he flies out there to assess the situation, and diagnose whether the weapon can be fixed or if it needs to be brought in for repair. The job is always independent for him when he goes out.?
Ruiz also assists with other billets in the battalion.
?He has held the billet as a Marine Integrated Maintenance Management Systems clerk and supply clerk to assist others,? said Cartmill. ?He is well-rounded and very mature to take on tasks, as well as having a lot of initiative to go out and search for things that need to be done instead of waiting on someone to come to him.?
Ruiz had only been with his unit in Hawaii for a month before deploying to Iraq.
?He got to the battalion as a [private first class] straight from school and a month later we deployed,? said Cartmill. ?He came out here and has really stepped into the job running. All the reports come back positive.?
Ruiz joined the Marine Corps in August 2004, but said he has known he wanted to be a Marine since he was 7 years old.
?My step-dad was a Marine,? he said. ?Plus, when I saw the Marines on TV they appealed to me more than the other services.?
At first Ruiz wanted to be in the infantry. However, taking his uncle?s advice about jobs in the military, Ruiz decided to follow his footsteps and become an armorer.
When he found out he would be coming to Iraq, Ruiz broke the news to his family.
?My step-dad knew I was going to end up coming here,? explained Ruiz. ?My grandmother didn?t want me to come out here, but I told her not to worry. I said, ?If anything was going to happen to me it would happen no matter where I was.??
With more than three months of his deployment behind him now, he said his family still worries but they are supportive.
?The family still worries due to what they hear on the news,? said Ruiz.
His mother is one of those who shares in the worry.
?It makes me nervous he is in Iraq,? said his mother, Estella Matthews. ?He has been there since May and I pray for him each and every spare moment I have. I wish he was home with me, but I know, and he knows, he has a job to do and he won’t be coming home until the job is done.?
She said she has known since he joined the Corps he would end up in Iraq.
?I was very proud he wanted to join especially during these times, but he explained this is something he really wanted to do and he was willing to go to Iraq for his country,? she said.
Matthews, a native of Santa Ana, Calif., said her son has a very strong family support group back home.
?Christopher is a very independent, smart, caring young man,? she said. ?As his mother, I am so very proud of who he has become. I know part of that is due to the Marine Corps. I always knew he would become someone special. Since he was a child he has always shown leadership skills.?
Since boot camp, Matthews said she has noticed changes in her son.
?I was nervous to see him after boot camp, I was afraid that he may have changed,? she said. ?Well, he did change, my little boy was now a young man, he stood taller, he spoke with respect, his room was cleaner and his clothes were pressed. He was a United States Marine and he was proud!?
Now, with four months left on his first deployment, Ruiz is already looking ahead at his future in the Corps.
?I want to try and go to school,? he said. ?I am currently leaning toward reenlisting. I want to be in charge of others, to help them and others in the unit.?
Ruiz is currently working on Marine Corps Institute correspondence courses and recently won a meritorious promotion board and will be promoted to corporal Dec. 2.
?I have learned a lot from the people who lead me, especially how to lead other Marines,? he said. ?I want to take the knowledge back and develop a new leadership style.?
Square Away Time
What was moments earlier a calm, quiet squad bay, now bustled with the more than 60 Marine Corps recruits rushing back after another fast-paced day of training.
After a brief from their senior drill instructor, Sgt. Kenneth Morgan, on their upcoming final drill evaluation, the recruits of Platoon 3078, Lima Co., 3rd RTBn., secured their rifles and rushed back on line as they prepared for their evening basic daily routine Monday.
A recruit spends well over half his time during recruit training on his feet, marching from here to there and completing countless training evolutions. Little time is afforded them to sit down for even a couple of minutes, but each night they have about an hour or so to do just that, among other personal matters.
Morgan said this time is important to a recruit’s well being, especially at the beginning of a training cycle.
“It gives them a chance to de-program and allows them to interact with other recruits,” he said. “It helps them develop teamwork themselves, rather than us having to push it on them.”
During this hour of “square away time,” recruits generally start off by shaving, brushing their teeth and hitting the showers. Once their personal hygiene is complete, they will each find their way back to their racks and tie up loose ends in preparation for the next day.
Many will read any mail they received that day and write home to loved ones, while others might brush a day’s worth of recruit training off their combat boots.
The majority of recruits from Platoon 3078 took a special interest in their personal appearance and physical fitness. Rather than read letters or gaze at photos of their former civilian lives, they looked ahead to their new ones in the Marine Corps and spent a good amount of time doing pull-ups, crunches and even lifting weights on the quarterdeck.
While a small group practiced rifle manual, a few others spent what seemed like almost the entire hour trimming loose threads or perfecting the sleeve-rolls of their MARPAT camouflage utility uniforms, all in effort to look their best during the final drill competition.
Once their “free hour” was complete, they hurried back on-line to await Morgan’s next command.
After a brief security check of all footlockers and rifles, a few minutes were set aside for evening devotion, then they prepared to hit the rack. As they stood silent and still, Morgan gave them one of their final commands of the evening, and with that, each recruit hopped onto their beds.
The playing of “Taps” signaled the end of another arduous day of recruit training, but though they enjoy “the night off,” most recruits will say they look forward to the next day – it puts them one step closer to becoming a Marine.
