US Marines 235th Birthday

Today marks the 235th Birthday of the US Marines. One of the longstanding traditions is a formal ball to mark the celebration. Last Year Lisa's Unit held their ball in Las Vegas. This year's ball was held last weekend at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim. It is an opportunity for them to dress up in their formal Dress Blues.

A very sad story

Below is a link to a story about Rex Kevin Brown, one of Lisa's Marine friends from 29 Palms. They worked closely together on the same mechanics crew. Using his accumulated leave to get out a few weeks early he planned to return home to Indiana and start college.

Tragically he and his mother died on the way home. Sometimes "unfair" doesn't come close to describing life; "Tragic" seems inadequate.

Mother and Son Killed in Accident

Two killed in crash on I-75 near Perry

By BECKY PURSER — bpurser@macon.com

Posted: 12:00am on Sep 9, 2010; Modified: 12:12am on Sep 9, 2010

Two people were killed in a single-car crash on Interstate 75 early Wednesday near Perry, according to the Georgia State Patrol.

The victims were identified as Maria L. Boyle, 53, and Rex Kevin Brown Jr., 22, of Lafayette, Ind., GSP Cpl. Elbert Slappy said.

Witnesses told authorities a black Hyundai with Indiana tags was traveling north in the far left lane when it suddenly veered to the right, crossed the middle and right lanes and traveled down a ditch and into the woods, Slappy said. The driver’s side of the car crashed into a tree, and the force of the impact spun the car around, Slappy said. The car came to rest facing west, he said.

The crash near mile marker 139 in Houston County was called in to GSP at 8:21 a.m.
The mother and son were the only passengers in the car, Slappy said.
Slappy said he suspects Boyle, who was driving, either fell asleep or became distracted, over-corrected and lost control of the car.

Read more here: http://www.macon.com/2010/09/09/1257600/two-killed-in-crash-on-i-75-near.html#storylink=cpy

Memorial Day Video

Here is a Memorial Day video I put together Sunday after taking many of the pictures Saturday afternoon. It is about the only thing I've done all weekend and Cheryl and I both have come down with a bug.

Long due update

The latest:

• Lisa got her wish to leave 29 Palms. In July she will be transferring to a similar Motor T unit at Camp Pendleton, just north of San Diego. She will finally escape the 110 degree days in the dessert. I know she will miss some of her co-workers and her roommate. Her new unit is available for deployment overseas although it is not scheduled at this time.

• Lisa and her roommate, are returning from a trip to visit her roommates family is South Dakota. They took off Friday night and drove all night to arrive on Saturday. Can you say Road Trip! Her roommate is also Native American and hails from the Rosebud reservation.

• Lisa will be home for some leave in early August including the Pow Wow. She is participating in a wedding on Saturday but expects to be in Siletz on Friday evening and Sunday. I don't know the exact days yet and she is undecided if she is driving, or flying up.
  

Hip problems again

Well after doing better for awhile, Lisa's hip is giving her a major problem again. She made here stop running this morning and sent her of to have it checked out again. They did some MRI's earlier this year but nothing was conclusive and things were better for awhile.

So if you think to say a prayer for her I know she would appreciate it. She returns to see the doctors again tomorrow (Wednesday).

Driving the ultimate All Terrain Vehicle (M-ATV)

Lisa sent this picture of her standing next to the new M-ATV. This is specifically designed for use in the rugged terrain of Afghanistan.

Lisa said since they are new there isn't much work to be done on them. But she does get to drive them around which she, and I, both think is pretty cool!

To see M-ATV in action go here and/or here for video.

The M-ATV is built by Oshkosh (they have come a long ways from making kids clothes) . Here is a more detailed description:

Oshkosh Defense is committed to providing the best protection and mobility to our Warfighters – through the most threatening terrain, in the most treacherous of circumstances. They get that with the Oshkosh® M-ATV. Because it’s engineered specifically for their difficult missions – to move them in and get them out as safely as possible.

The Oshkosh M-ATV incorporates rugged, durable, patented components and systems for maximum Warfighter mobility and survivability. Derived from the Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement (MTVR) platform, the M-ATV incorporates the proprietary TAK-4® independent suspension system with battle-tested technology. It has the wheel travel, payload capacity, side slope stability, vehicle durability, extreme mobility and necessary Warfighter protection for today’s fight. In today’s most challenging battle zones, the M-ATV is the combat-tested, mobile, survivable, durable solution – the solution to getting Warfighters to the fight and back again.

Personally, I think it would be pretty cool to tailgate in one of these. Maybe at next years Rose Bowl if Oregon can come up with a quarterback and I can come up with $500,000.

Marine's Launch Assault in southern Afgahnistan

You may have heard on the news that the Marine's have launched a major assault on Marjah in the southern part of Afghanistan. This is one of the Taliban's strongholds.

There is some information here and here. It is frustrating to me that most of the best information these days come from newspapers in Europe. I didn't see any real detail about what is happening over there in American media until a wayward missile hit a civilian location. The second link talks about the stifling rules of engagement that can cripple our troops efforts to win. Here is an example from the UK's Times Online paper:

US Marines said they are constrained by strict new rules of engagement that make their task more dangerous. Under the rules, troops cannot fire at people unless they commit a hostile act or show intent.

Corporal Travis Anderson, 20, from Iowa, said his platoon had repeatedly seen Afghan fighters dropping their guns into ditches before melting away into the civilian population.

“It’s hard to fight a war like this,” he said. “They’re using our rules of engagement against us.”

And there is more. One of Lisa's friends is over there assisting two of the two infantry units involved, known as the Marjah Marines. As a result of the rocket incident they are no longer beging allowed to use them to target the bad guys.

Keep them all in your prayers. This information from the mom of Lisa's friend brings home just what they face.

(Lisa's friend) called last Thursday. Her unit had a meeting the night before and was told the (stuff) is about to hit the fan and to call home to make peace with your loved ones and paper work. While she has a desk job she is also required to drive convoys when ever needed. She had a convoy the day before and was scheduled for one the next day, which happened to be Friday, the day the Marines went in to Marjah. Her last thoughts were for me to “tell Dad I love him very much.”

UPDATE: (She) also called her Mom very early Monday morning. She is back at her desk job. Her Mom said she was fine and she sounded great.

Lisa qualifies as Sharp Shooter

Lisa finished here work on rifle range last Friday finishing just short of Marine Expert by a few points. She said one shooting table, the rapid fire at 300 yards cost her the Expert qualification.

The good news is that qualification was the final step for her to be pinned as a Corporal which should happen in a month or two at the most. She bought her chevrons and pins which they are required to have with them all the time. The promotion usually happens without warning so they have to be prepared for it to happen.

Last step on the way to Corporal!

Lisa has been on the Rifle Range for the last week. Today was test day and she "qual'd" That is the Marine lingo for passing score.

She said she was on pace to score Expert, the top rank, but didn't score as well on the rapid fire series as she normally does. But she is hard on herself and it probably isn't all that bad. She has testing on moving targets tomorrow which provides a chance for her to boost her score.

In any case she was relieved after last year and said this was the last thing she needed to pass before she can obtain a rank of Corporal. No telling when they will actually do that. The Marines are kind of funny that way. But is should happen in the next month or two.

I wish I was this motivated

Lisa sent a text message about her plans for today:

"Tonight is going to be such a sauna night. We started the morning with pyramid pull ups and push ups. Later we go to mcmap (Marine Corp marshal arts) and after that PT (Physical Training) until 5:00"

Makes me tired thinking about it!

Nice story about the first Marine One female flight crew

Just a nice positive story that seems to be so rarely seen in today's mainstream media.

Grieves enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1990 -- almost 20 years ago. Growing up, she wanted to become a veterinarian, but once in the Marines, she was encouraged to go to college and then flight school. Grieves chose the Marine Corps because it had the most rigorous training program.

"It ended up being one of the best decisions I've ever made," she said.

Obviously, meeting the president of the United States is an exceptional opportunity," she said. "But I think just being a Marine is far above that privilege."

The full story is here.

Green Belt School

Lisa was selected from her shop to start Green Belt School. This is the next MCMAP level after the Tan and Grey belt levels. It is one of the requirements for Corporal.

MCMAP

The Marine Corps Martial Arts Program (MCMAP, pronounced /ˈmɪkmæp/) is a combat system developed by the United States Marine Corps to combine existing and new hand-to-hand and close quarters combat (CQC) techniques with morale and team-building functions and instruction in what the Marine Corps calls the "Warrior Ethos".^[1] The program, which began in 2001, trains Marines (and U.S. Navypersonnel attached to Marine Units) in unarmed combat, edged weapons, weapons of opportunity, and rifle and bayonet techniques. It also stresses mental and character development, including the responsible use of force, leadership, and teamwork. The MCMAP has several nicknames, including semper fu (a play on the Marine Corps motto semper fi and kung fu)