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BELIZE CITY, Belize - Volunteer firefighter, actor,
flight instructor, commercial airline pilot and Marine.
United States Marine Corps Gunnery Sgt. Keith Day holds
all of these titles.
“I believe you have to find what
your niche is,” he said. “My dad used to tell me to do
whatever I wanted to do as long as I'm successful.”
And, he has been in all his chosen paths.
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U.S. Marine Corps Gunnery Sgt. Keith Day
challenges Hattieville Government School students to a race during a
physical fitness lesson he led on May 13, 2014. Day is deployed in
support of the New Horizons training exercise in Belize. (U.S. Air
Force photo by Master Sgt. Kelly Ogden)
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At the
young age of 14, Day began working as a volunteer
firefighter starting with the Lower South Hampton Fire
Department in Trevose, Pennsylvania, then moving to the
Langhorne Middletown Fire Company in Langhorne,
Pennsylvania, of which he is still an inactive member today.
“God blessed me with the ability to love people,” he
said. “I always want to help people.”
Throughout his
adolescence, Day lacked passion for any specific career path
but had dreams of becoming a professional drummer,
veterinarian, or a defensive end for the Philadelphia
Eagles.
“Unfortunately, my parents hated when I
played the drums, and I wasn't keeping up with the growth
needed to be a defensive end.”
It wasn't until his
senior year of high school that he found his passion.
“My parents took us on a family trip to Florida, it was
my first time flying, and I fell in love with it,” the
Marine said.
This new love of flying inspired Day to
look into joining the U.S. Air Force. Only there was one
small hitch when he went to enlist ... the recruiter wasn't
there.
“I went in and the door was closed, so I
walked down the hall to the United States Marine Corps
recruiting office to ask when he might be back,” said Day.
“The sergeant greeted me with a booming voice and asked,
‘Why would you want to join the Air Force when you could
join the Marines?'"
So 24 hours later, Day swore in.
“I have no regrets ... it was a perfect fit for me,” he
says of joining the Marine Corps.
Day joined the U.S.
Marine Reserve in 1988 and spent the next six years in fire
crash and rescue, separating in 1994. During his time in the
reserves, he completed training in California and decided to
move there, working odd jobs, going to school and ultimately
enlisting once again in the Marine Corps reserves into civil
affairs.
“I am basically the liaison between the
commander and the host nation,” Day explains. “I get to meet
a lot of people, and I like it.”
Despite his
enjoyment in his new job in the Marines, he never gave up
his dream to someday fly and, in 2005, he earned his
professional aeronautics degree with a minor in marketing.
He would later continue on to earn his single and
multi-engine commercial licenses, single engine flight
instructor and single engine instruments certifications.
In the years to follow, Day would hold a variety of
jobs, continuing his flight instructing and picking up
another specialty, acting.
Day was introduced to a
career in acting by a friend as a way to make ends meet.
He went on to appear in a television series, national
commercial campaign, multiple plays and an independent
movie.
“I enjoy entertaining people and making them
feel good,” said Day.
The acting jobs led to Day
joining the Screen Actors Guild, opening the door for an
opportunity for him to make a difference in his community.
He began volunteering his time in a program called
BookPALS, reading to children in Los Angeles area schools.
It was during his participation in the program that he found
yet another way to help, he began a 20-minute fitness
program for one of the classes.
His experience in
this program has proved valuable during his recent
deployment to Belize in support of the New Horizons training
exercise. While acting as a liaison for the engineering and
medical specialist as they build schools and provide medical
treatment to Belizeans, Day ran across a unique opportunity
to provide his own type of assistance to the local
population.
During a meeting with the Ministry of
Health and the principal at a government school in Belize,
he learned of their desire to incorporate a physical fitness
program into the government school system.
The Marine
jumped at the opportunity to help.
“The Marine Corps
keeps me young and physically fit,” he said. “I like sharing
that with the kids while making them laugh” he adds.
Assisted by a team of Airmen and Marines attached to the New
Horizons Task Force, Day led over 370 students ranging from
ages 3 to 11 through a series of exercises.
“This has
been the best annual training exercise I've ever
participated in,” he added.
Despite all of the jobs
Day has held over the years, he always comes back to his
love of flying.
“I am working on submitting a package
for the U.S. Navy's aerospace engineering duty officers, I
would love to be at least a lieutenant commander someday,”
said Day. “I love being an enlisted gunnery sergeant, but
I've always wanted to wear the officer rank.”
No
matter where his future career path may lead, Day says one
thing will never change.
“I will always be a Marine.”
By U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Brandy Stocker
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2014
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