1st Lt. John McJunkin (left), the Regional Command Southwest operation and maintenance Marine Corps budget officer, and a native of Houston, stands with Maj. Gen. John A. Toolan, the commanding general of Regional Command Southwest, after McJunkin's promotion ceremony
at Camp Leatherneck, Helmand province on July 29, 2011. McJunkin was
a student at Texas A&M International University in Laredo, Texas, on
9/11. Photo by USMC Cpl. Katherine Keleher |
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CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan (9/3/2011) – Many Americans remember
where they were when they heard the news on September 11, 2001. They
remember watching the planes crash into the World Trade Center
towers and listening to the news about the plane crash at the
Pentagon and United Airlines Flight 93 crashing into a field in
Shanksville, Pa. Some felt sorrow, anger or fear. Others felt a call
to serve. First Lt. John McJunkin was one of the latter.
Now,
nearly ten years to the day of the attack, McJunkin, is deployed to
Afghanistan serving as the budget officer for Regional Command
Southwest.
McJunkin, a native of Houston, was sleeping in his
dormitory room, at Texas A&M International University in Laredo,
Texas, that Tuesday morning before class. His door flew open and his
roommate yelled at him to wake up, that America was under attack.
The two made their way to the building's common area, where
the second plane flying into the south tower was replaying on a
big-screen TV.
“We didn't know exactly what was happening,
but the biggest thing |
|
that was going through my head once we found out that Osama Bin
Ladin and Al Qaeda were taking claim for it was ‘Why?,'” he
explained nearly 10 years after the tragic day. |
On October 7, 2001, President George W. Bush announced
America was going to war.
“He said that we were
going to war and that it was a holy war,” McJunkin
reflected. “That was when I said ‘okay, I'm going to pick up
arms. I'm going to protect our freedom of religion that is
provided in America. I'm not going to allow extremism
through Islamic jihad to grow and affect our way of life.
It's just not going to happen on my watch.'”
McJunkin
left college and landed himself on the yellow footprints of
Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, July 29, 2002.
“I think it's really noble of him to have put the
welfare of his country ahead of himself and his education,”
said Sgt. Warren Webber III, the RC(SW) budget chief, and a
native of Indian River, Mich. “He's a good Marine and leader
because he's mission accomplishment first, then troop
welfare. He has the total Marine concept and lives for the
Marine Corps.”
On choosing which branch to join,
McJunkin said his decision was easy.
“I wanted to get
down and dirty. I wanted to be a part of the world's finest
war fighting organization there is to offer,” he boasted on
his decision to join the Corps. “I think the challenge was
why I came to the Marine Corps as opposed to any other
branch of service. The Marine Corps, well there's just
something about it. It's small and it has the same
capabilities of all the other services.”
Coming in
with an open contract on the enlisted side of the Marine
Corps, the Corps put McJunkin in the job field of financial
management. Lucky for him, he enjoyed his work.
But,
something was still missing. He decided he wanted to finish
his degree and become a commissioned officer. McJunkin
applied for the Broadened Opportunity for Officer Selection
and Training program [BOOST] and was accepted. He graduated
from Worcester State University and received his commission
July 29, 2009, exactly seven years to the day after he
arrived at MCRD San Diego. Opting to stay in the field of
finance, McJunkin became a budget officer.
“Everyday
our dollars that we employ across all six war fighting
functions, whether it is logistics, command and control or
if it is fires – it touches a dollar,” he said. “Somebody
has to account for that. Through the Global War on Terrorism
some would say that our deficit is too large to bear. I like
to know that since September 11, everything we're doing with
money as a weapon system directly correlates to September
11, 2001.”
McJunkin said he feels fortunate to know
that as the 10th anniversary of the tragic attacks, he is
serving in Afghanistan alongside what he considers to be
nothing but good Americans.
“I think every generation
has that call to arms,” he explained. “Whether it's World
War I, World War II, Korea or Vietnam. We might be known as
the iPod generation. We might be a little bit more
sophisticated with Xbox and Playstation. But, I think we're
still as hungry and we're still as strong and capable as the
generations who have gone before us.
“I think
everybody who is in uniform today is a good person just
trying to answer the call to arms. This is an all volunteer
service right out here in Afghanistan. And throughout my
tour I've met some fine people, some fine Americans.”
McJunkin looks forward to returning home to Marine Corps
Base Camp Lejeune, N.C. this spring, where he will be
reunited with his wife Laura and their young daughter.
By USMC Cpl. Katherine Keleher, Regional Command Southwest
Marine Corps News
Copyright 2011
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