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I was born on September 3, 1982 in Atlanta, Georgia.
I was raised in the small town of Zebulon. Growing up I worked the family
farm. In high school, I was the Senior Class President and played Varsity
Track, Cross Country, Gold and Wrestling. After graduating from Pike County
high school in May of 2001, I joined the Marine Corps.
On July 9, 2001 I loaded a van with ten
others, and we departed Atlanta MEPS for Parris Island, SC.
Five hours later I was courteously greeted by a Drill
Instructor screaming something about yellow footprints
and aye-aye sir. After 54 hours of no sleep and being
hoarded around getting shots, uniforms issued, and "haircuts",
we officially became 2nd Recruit Battalion, Hotel Company,
Platoon 2080. We quickly became know as the dirty south
platoon because all 88 of us were from below the Mason-Dixon
Line. During the next 13 weeks I found out all about sand fly
burials, "the pit', and just how far I could run before the
sun came up. My military career was changed forever on
Tuesday September 11, 2001 when terrorists attacked our
homeland and killed over 3,000 Americans. As my "Heavy"
Drill Instructor put it, "From this point on the gloves
are off." I found out the following weeks he wasn't joking.
I received a meritorious promotion to Private First Class.
Then, on October 5, 2001, I graduated as "H" Company Honor
Graduate and received a meritorious promotion to Lance
Corporal and a Certificate of Commendation.
Following 10 days of leave, I reported to Camp Geiger,
NC for 54 days of the USMC School of Infantry. My hopes of laying low
were quickly ended when I was the only Lance Corporal. I found myself
as Guide for 2nd Platoon, Alpha Company. On December 7, 2001 I graduated
Infantry School and was an official 0311 (USMC Rifleman MOS) and received
a second Certificate of Commendation for leadership throughout Infantry
School. Everyone except the reservists, the mortar men, and my rack mate
(who somehow got sent to Hawaii) loaded up on 7 tons and drove across
the river to Camp Lujuene, NC where we reported to 1st Battalion 8th Marines.
In January of 2002 I shipped out to
Bridgeport, CA to the Mountain Warfare Training Center.
We were in full swing training for the mountains and snow of
Afghanistan. During the next 31 days we endured temperatures
as low as -33 degrees Fahrenheit, slept in snow caves, and
summitted Hill 9999. A few weeks later I was off again.
This time it was off to Norway for more cold weather training.
We visited the nuclear blast protected caves from the Cold
War (originally dug out by the Germans in WWII), trained
with NATO troops, and ventured into the Arctic Circle
where we were blasted by a blizzard.
The rest of 2002 we completed a
training "work up" to be the Battalion Landing Team
of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit. I trained in
places at Camp Lejuene, NC and places like FT. A.P.
Hill, VA and Mayport, FL. I also spent time onboard
the U.S.S. Iwo Jima and U.S.S Carter-Hall.
I returned from Christmas leave to find that my unit,
as well as most of Camp Lejuene, had been ordered to set sail for the
Middle East. We were given a 96-hour pass to take our things home and
say goodbye. I rushed back to my girlfriend, asked her to marry me without
a ring, and we were wed at the preacher's house on January 19, 2003. I
boarded the U.S.S. Carter-Hall and left the United States on March 5,
2003. We crossed the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea at 20 knots.
Two weeks later we arrived at Port Said, Egypt only to encounter a sixty-ship
backup to transit the Suez Canal. From the Eastern Mediterranean Sea we
received word that President Bush had given Saddam a 48-hour ultimatum.
New plans were decided on and my unit, the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit,
along with the Army's 4th Infantry Division would invade Iraq from Turkey.
The Turkish government halted this idea so we sailed to the island of
Crete. Because Greece did not want to be known that hey were helping the
Americans in the Iraq War, we had to be bused from the shipyards on the
southern part of the island to the airport on the northern part of the
island at night.
Finally in the early morning hours of April 14th, 2003,
I landed at the Mosul Airport in Northern Iraq. It had been "secured"
by a handful of Army Special Forces soldiers and Kurdish Peshmergan deploying
their chaffe. I just remember the crew chief walking over us trying to
get to the rear of the plane yelling, "They're shooting at us". Baghdad
had been captured and the war seemed as if it would come to a quick end,
so only 700 out of our nearly 3,000 Marines made it in country. The following
weeks were spent securing the airfield, building a defensive perimeter,
and patrolling the city. We were in a constant state of confusion as the
rules of engagement and our role in the war were changing daily. We went
from fighting remnants of the Republican Guard and Iraq's 5th Cops, to
Fedayeen Fighters and Saddam Loyalists, to finally stopping looters and
criminals. Once relieved by the 101st Airborne Division we left Iraq and
headed back to ship.
After leaving Iraq, I went to liberty in
Italy. I visited Taranto and Rome where I met Paul McCartney
at the Colusseum and was blessed by Pope John Paul II. This
meant a great deal to me because the Pope had blessed my
grandfather after he helped to liberate Rome in WWII. From
Italy I went to Albania; then we finally transited the Suez
Canal and entered the Persian Gulf were we were held in reserve.
While in the Persian Gulf, I visited the United Arab Emeritus.
In July 2003 we went to the Horn of Africa and Djibouti.
Our cold weather training came in handy as temperatures would
often hover around 130 degrees and there was desert as far as
the eye could see!
In August of 2003 we were on the
move again. The Country of Liberia had fallen into
chaos, so we were off to the other coast of Africa.
In an awesome display of our military might, the U.S.S.
Iwo Jima, U.S.S. Carter-Hill, and the U.S.S. Nashville
passed up and down the Liberian coast in single file 3
miles offshore. The dictator Charles Taylor fled to a
neighboring country and the violence subsided. Elements
of the MEU secured the port, Monrovia Airport, and the
U.S. Embassy. Forces of the African Union arrived in
September, and for the first time in a long time it
appeared that we were heading home. We sailed to Rota,
Spain for customs and to wash down our equipment. Then
we had a brief port call in Lisbon, Portugal. As we
entered the port, we manned the rails. On October 23,
2003, 1st Battalion 8th Marines returned to the United
States. It was the 20th anniversary of the Beruit bombing
when 1/8 lost over 200 Marines.
I didn't rest long. I left Alpha
Company and joined the Scout Sniper Platoon. On June 22,
2003 I arrived at A1 Asad in Western Iraq for my second
tour of duty. The Marine Corps had been given the restive
A1 Anbar Province. In the next seven months I found myself
in Haditha, Hit, Rawah, Karmah and Fallujah.
On November 8, 2004 I crossed the
line of departure and entered a battle that would define
my life and my Marine Corps career. The Battle of Fallujah
was called Operation Phantom Fury, and our mission was to
kill or capture the 2,000 plus terrorists that held the city
to possibly include Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi. In a month of
house-to-house and street-to-street fighting we did just
that. Later we learned that Zarqawi left before the battle,
but terrorist operations were severely disrupted and Fallujah
was returned to its people. The cost was high. In seven months
we lost 21 Marines Killed in Action and over 200 Wounded in
Action with 17 of the KIA and 150 of the WIA coming in 3
weeks in Fallujah.
On January 28, 2005 I returned to home. I
helped to train the new Marines for their next deployment and
left the Marine Corps on July 8, 2005 I returned home. I helped
to train the new Marines for their next deployment where I
went to college. After earning my Associate's Degree from
Cypress College, my family and I moved to McKinney. Now I am
a Police Officer and spend my time with my wife raising my
son and two daughters.
Award Received:
- Combat Action Ribbon
- Good Conduct Medal
- Sea Service Deployment Ribbon (2nd Award)
- Global War on Terrorism Service Expeditionary Medal (Iraq)
- Navy Unit Citation
- Humanitarian Service Medal
- National Defense Medalv
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