Thus was the text message Cheryl received from Lisa today. Earlier in March Lisa was asked to be a part of a contingent that would travel to Camp Pendleton to participate in a ceremony for a retiring officer. They loaded onto a plane and made the short flight early this morning.
So later in the day Lisa sent a text saying that she was called out in front of everyone and given this challenge coin. The first question Cheryl had was, "what does that mean." Lisa tried to explain that it was given to her by the a Sergeant Major from her base. While you can buy challenge coins online, this is a special coin because not only was it given by the officer, it also carries the rank of the officer on one side and the command on the other side. After more texting it turns out that the female officer is the top Non-Commissioned Officer (NCO) for the base where Lisa is stationed.
Challenge coins are given to service members by commanders to boost morale and honor service. When the Sergeant Major started searching for Lisa to bring her up front, as typical, Lisa assumed she was going to be in trouble. haha But she is quite proud, in a Lisa sort of way. Of course I am proud too and look forward to seeing her coin later this weekend.
Here is a short article on the history of the awarding of Challenge Coins in the Marine Corp. I haven't received confirmation from Lisa yet but I believe, based on her text messages, that this is the officer who gave her the coin.
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1 comment:
The happiness of a mother for her daughter can be understood clearly here. It is really a great moment to receive marine challenge coins from a higher official during a ceremony.
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