|
MOUNTAIN WARFARE TRAINING CENTER, BRIDGEPORT, Calif. –– Some
bonds are inherited, like the bond we share with family. Other times
throughout life and with the experiences we share, people are united
through hardship. Once established, these bonds are difficult to
break.
|
Pfc. Rico Morales, a machine gunner with weapons platoon, Echo
Company, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, performs a disassembly
and assembly drill while being timed by his squad leader, Lance Cpl.
Justin Harris, at Mountain Warfare Training Center in Bridgeport,
Calif., March 27, 2013. (U.S. Marine Corps photo
Photo by Lance Cpl. Suzanna Lapi)
|
Sometimes the strongest bonds are the ones that have been
forged in the toughest of conditions, like the camaraderie
of brothers in arms. These squads of military men are united
as one through long hours of strenuous training and the
constant presence of sacrifice.
Just as the rounds of
a machine gunner's belt are linked together, so are the
Marines themselves. This bond is the glue that holds this
family of brothers together. Lance Cpl. Justin Harris and
Pfc. Rico Morales know what it takes to create and keep
their brotherhood intact.
Harris, a machine gun
squad leader with weapons platoon, Echo Company, 2nd
Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, strives to teach his Marine,
Morales, what it means to be apart of a brotherhood by
passing on the lessons he has learned.
Harris, a
native of Deer Park, Wash., said his journey as a Marine
began because of his uncle, Fred, who was also a Marine.
“I remember as a kid, he would always bring me Marine
Corps shirts,” Harris said. “I would look at his picture and
think, ‘That's what I want to do.' So three months before I
graduated high school, I walked into a recruiter's office
and told them I wanted infantry, to be on the front lines
and experience combat like my uncle did in Iraq and
Fallujah.”
After completing training at School of
Infantry–West and getting stationed at Marine Corps Base
Hawaii, Harris went on a unit deployment program to Japan to
complete jungle warfare training for two weeks. He said he
was a team leader as a junior Marine.
“Being a team
leader while in Japan was really important to me since I was
new and it was my first time,” Harris said. “It was a good
experience because I also had the opportunity to be squad
leader when my squad leader was on duty. I would be the one
to step up, and it prepared me for what I'm going through
right now being squad leader, with training junior Marines
like Morales.”
Morales, a machine gunner with weapons
platoon, Echo Co., 2nd Bn., 3rd Marines and native of San
Angelo, Texas, said he wanted to become a machine gunner
because he likes the confidence the Marines in this field
display, and wanted that quality in himself.
“In SOI,
we (carried) the most weight on the hikes, and I wanted to
do that,” Morales said. “When other sections would fall out
and they weren't carrying as much weight as I was, I wanted
the bragging rights. It gives me a sense of pride.”
Morales said he was anxious and excited to begin working
with the machine guns and to meet his seniors. He said as a
senior, Harris stands out from others.
“His
leadership style is great because he helps me when I need
it, and when we do physical training, he pushes me,” Morales
said. “He gives me that motivation to push myself further,
and when I need help with anything, he is there for me. I'm
excited to learn from him and work with him to get all the
knowledge that he has. In doing that, I can apply it myself
and in the future with any junior Marines I may have.”
Staff Sgt. Richard Martinez, acting first sergeant and
company gunnery sergeant with Echo Co., 2nd Bn., 3rd
Marines, said the bond his Marines have is important for the
mission.
“Machine gunners give suppression to
riflemen to proceed to their objective,” Martinez, a native
of Lubbock, Texas, said. “So everything from the trust they
have in each other to the weapon systems has to be second
nature for them to be successful. They live and breathe all
of it, and strive to become leaders to pass on their
knowledge.”
Harris said the bond established in
leadership is important during training and translates to
the battlefield.
“When we train, we want our junior
Marines to respect us because in combat, if someone yells,
‘Hey, get down!' no one should think twice,” Harris said.
“We instill respect because we need that trust. That's why
we train the way we do during machine gun drills. We run and
get their heart rate up so they know how to react under
pressure. They recite knowledge as well so everything
becomes instinctive.”
Morales said the bond he has
developed with Harris was built through the struggle during
training.
“When he pushes me, it brings us closer
together,” Morales said. “I know I can trust him because he
wants me to do better. If we find ourselves in combat, I
have confidence that he is there for me, that he has my
back. I feel the same way for my other Marines that I went
through boot camp and SOI with. I have a bond with them. We
know we have each other's backs no matter what.”
The
bond built in training carries these Marines through the
stressors of combat. They know when they look to their left
or to their right, they can trust the person they see beside
them.
“As leaders, we try to be hard on our juniors,
but not too hard,” Harris said. “That way we build trust. I
trust them with my life. We are looking for the same thing
from them. If we don't have that, we will fail. We need the
confidence and trust and bond between each other to succeed
and survive.”
By USMC Lance Cpl. Suzanna Lapi
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2013
Comment on this article |
