Virginians see new mission as part of tradition
Marines from Richmond, Hopewell, Northern Virginia and Blacksburg have volunteered for the Corps' new special-operations units.
*Note: This article is referring to the new MARSOC unit.
Richmond Times-Dispatch
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Several are graduates of Richmond-area schools or Virginia colleges. Gathered in a conference room, they discussed their interest in special operations. The Marine Corps asked that the men's names not be used because they are part of small units to be deployed abroad.
"It takes a certain drive and personality," said a Navy corpsman who provides medical assistance to Marines. "It's a Type A personality.
"We're adrenaline junkies" surfing, rock climbing, mountain biking and motorcycling are common hobbies.
Many came from Force Reconnaissance units, Marines with special skills in conducting special operations and small-unit raids.
They see themselves as part of the Corps' history of finding ways to reshape itself and meet the latest threat -- similar to the roles played by the Marine Raiders of World War II and the Force Reconnaissance units of Vietnam and both Iraq wars.
"We're following in their footsteps," one Virginia Marine said.
One Northern Virginian brought an especially useful set of skills to Camp Lejeune. The young sergeant, born in Tunisia, spent five years in Baghdad with his father, who worked for the U.S. State Department during the Iran-Iraq War, which lasted from 1980 to 1988.
"I just remember a lot of air-raid sirens and air-raid drills," he recalled nonchalantly. "They had designated areas in the schools when air-raid sirens went off in Baghdad, and everyone had to go there."
He also lived in Syria, which he considers the friendliest nation in the Middle East. He said that given his upbringing, "it was definitely a lot more work filling out my application for security clearance."
Now the Arabic-speaking Marine helps his colleagues try to avoid cultural clashes, especially involving how Arabs react to Westerners, he said. -- Chip Jones