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6th Marine Corps District MEOP

The Musician Enlistment Option Program gives young men and women the opportunity to fight and win our Nation’s battles while pursuing their passion for music. While this program serves as a great opportunity, finding the few who are qualified and up to the challenge can be a challenge all in itself. This is because the individual must be not only a skilled musician but first and foremost a Marine.

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Capt. Gravelle attends his son's graduation - Improvise, adapt and overcome--a saying that many Marines live by. Serving in the Marine Corps is a difficult but rewarding journey, one that is experienced by both the Marines and their family members. Capt. Darryl Gravelle, recruiting station Charlotte’s operations officer, and his family have grown accustomed to the military lifestyle, for he and his family have a long history of military service. Service that sees no end in the near future.

A Continuing Family Tradition

Improvise, adapt and overcome--a saying that many Marines live by. Serving in the Marine Corps is a difficult but rewarding journey, one that is experienced by both the Marines and their family members. Capt. Darryl Gravelle, recruiting station Charlotte’s operations officer, and his family have grown accustomed to the military lifestyle, for he and his family have a long history of military service. Service that sees no end in the near future.

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As high schoolers, both lost their fathers due to heart attacks. Huggan became a father figure for Stanley, who eventually joined the Marine Corps and is now undergoing initial former training in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri to become a motor transportation operator. - Staff Sgt. Vincent Huggan joins Rosemary Morris in cheering on her son, Stanley, during a wrestling tournament in the Tampa Bay area during the 2019-2020 school year. Huggan, a canvassing recruiter with Recruiting Substation St. Petersburg, Florida, bonded with Stanley, a graduate of Palm Harbor University High School, Palm Harbor, Florida, through shared tragedy. As high schoolers, both lost their fathers due to heart attacks. Huggan became a father figure for Stanley, who eventually joined the Marine Corps and is now undergoing initial former training in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri to become a motor transportation operator.

Fighting to Find the Father Within: Shared tragedy builds bond between recruiter, future Marine

Many recruiters form close bonds with their future Marines, especially when they share common life experience -- or, in the case of U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Vincent Huggan and Pfc. Stanley Morris, common tragedy. Huggan’s journey began as a teenage boy with his mother and two younger brothers. In high school, he excelled in track and football. While his mother was cheering him on in the crowd, he always seemed to be missing that father figure. When he looked around him, he could see teammates with their fathers, and even when he was successful, he felt lost.

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Babineaux now works a civilian job in Virginia, and supervises 20-30 engine and flight line mechanic Marines in Beaufort, South Carolina during his periodic drill weekends. - Staff Sgt. Andre Babineaux, a Marine with Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron 501, is a prior active duty Marine who is now part of the Marine Corps Reserves. Babineaux now works a civilian job in Virginia, and supervises 20-30 engine and flight line mechanic Marines in Beaufort, South Carolina during his periodic drill weekends.

Prior Service Recruiting

When young men and women sign a four to five-year active duty Marine Corps contract, they take an oath that ensures they understand the magnitude of their commitment. However, they may not realize that they’ll have to make another difficult decision when they near the end of their obligated service. Many see it as a binary choice. On one hand, they can re-enlist and continue to enjoy esprit de corps, military benefits and the security of a government job. On the other, they can leave behind the structure and security of the Marine Corps for a civilian job that caters more to domestic comfort. However, there is a third option. Marines can transition directly from active duty into the Marine Corps Reserve. They can retain many benefits of active service while gaining greater flexibility.

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To the People Who've Changed Us

To the people who have changed us-- thank you. When I sit down and truly think about what made me want to be a United States Marine, it was not the millions and millions of dollars spent on commercials and advertisements, though they did plant the seed, or the thought of travelling the world. It was the feeling inside of me that I was meant to be a part of something bigger than myself. I know that I do not speak for all Marines and why they joined the Corps. However, what I do know is that every Marine has that “someone,” that someone who facilitated their path, that someone who showed them they too could accept the challenge and earn the hallowed eagle, globe, and anchor, and the title United States Marine.

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The Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps Scholarship is a highly competitive and sought after opportunity available to those interested in serving as Navy or Marine Corps officers. - Isaiah Morton, a Clover, South Carolina native, is awarded the Naval Reserve Training Corps Scholarship.

Clover Native Awarded NROTC Scholarship

CLOVER, S.C. -- The Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps Scholarship is a highly competitive and sought after opportunity available to those interested in serving as Navy or Marine Corps officers. This year, Isaiah Morton, a senior at Clover High School, was one of the applicants. “I could tell from the beginning that Isaiah Morton was an incredibly bright and intelligent young man, but what set him apart was his charisma and the way he carried himself,” said Sgt. Matthew Barfield, a recruiter at Recruiting Substation Rock Hill. “He has the same qualities in him that the Marine Corps looks for when selecting officers.”

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David (left) and Brianna (right) pose for a photo at their wedding. (U.S. Marine Corps courtesy photo) - David (left) and Brianna (right) pose for a photo at their wedding. (U.S. Marine Corps courtesy photo)

From Wedding Shoes To Combat Boots

KENNESAW, Ga. – Making the commitment to go to Officer Candidates School and ultimately commission in the U.S. Marine Corps is a rare feat. Making that commitment while married and as a couple? Nearly unheard of, but David and Brianna Whitehead did just that. Their story began in 2012 when David and Brianna decided to join Navy Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps at Lassiter High School in Marietta, Georgia. Initially they were just acquaintances, but by their sophomore year, they started dating. “It was quick," said David. "We started talking, then went on a drill trip in Jacksonville, Florida, and then, by the next week, we started dating. We started dating in October of 2013, and we’ve been together ever since.”

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Johnson was awarded the NROTC scholarship in 2018 and is attending college at Louisiana State University. Those who are nominated through the highly competitive national selection process receive full tuition, a books stipend, educational fees, and other financial benefits at many of the country's leading colleges and universities. Upon graduation, NROTC recipients earn a commission as an officer in the Marine Corps or Navy. (Courtesy Photo) - Midshipman 3rd Class Michael Johnson, a recipient of the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC) Scholarship and sophomore at Louisiana State University, participates in a field training exercise in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Nov. 22, 2019.

Louisiana native pursues future as a Marine Corps officer

Michael Johnson, a Rayne, Louisiana, native and sophomore at Louisiana State University, won the $180,000 scholarship in 2018. His desire to serve in the military was influenced by his grandfather, a U.S. Navy veteran, who served in World War II.

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Lt. Col. Jose Luis Montalvan, with 6th Marine Corps District, remembers his journey at 11 years of age from Nicaragua to the U.S., and how his upbringing led him to a life of military service at MCRD Parris Island, South Carolina, on Sept. 3, 2020. Montalvan enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1995, and earned a commissioning through the Marine Enlisted Commissioning Education Program in 2002. He currently serves as the district recruiting operations officer for 6th MCD, where he oversees recruiting operations and training to ensure that the most qualified men and women are given the opportunity to join the Marine Corps. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Jorge A. Rosales) - Lt. Col. Jose Luis Montalvan, with 6th Marine Corps District, remembers his journey at 11 years of age from Nicaragua to the U.S., and how his upbringing led him to a life of military service at MCRD Parris Island, South Carolina, on Sept. 3, 2020. Montalvan enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1995, and earned a commissioning through the Marine Enlisted Commissioning Education Program in 2002. He currently serves as the district recruiting operations officer for 6th MCD, where he oversees recruiting operations and training to ensure that the most qualified men and women are given the opportunity to join the Marine Corps. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Jorge A. Rosales)

From Immigrant to Marine Corps Officer | Lt. Col. Jose Luis Montalvan

A shivering 11-year-old boy looked back across the Rio Grande, transfixed in horror. He thought it odd that the human traffickers made everyone take off their clothes and ordered the men and children to swim across first. As he looked back, he understood why. The descending darkness was not enough to hide the sight of the women being raped on the opposite shore during that cold night in 1987.

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Taylor, a retired master sergeant, served over 20 years in the Marines and fought in the Vietnam War. (Courtesy photo) - Thomas G. Taylor visits the Iwo Jima memorial on Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, South Carolina during a road trip across the country to visit several military installations. Taylor, a retired master sergeant, served over 20 years in the Marines and fought in the Vietnam War. (Courtesy photo)