Talk about a motivated marriage. On July 26, Sgts. Maj. Bradley and Holly Prafke retired in a joint ceremony at Marine Corps Air Station New River, N.C. The Prafkes’ commitment to the Corps goes almost as deep as their commitment to each other: They retired with 30 years of service apiece under their belts, and they were together for 27 of those years. They met, according to news reports, in Camp Pendleton, Calif., when he was a lance corporal and she was a corporal. Bradley Prafke relinquished his last post, that of sergeant major for Marine Aircraft Group 29, during…
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[HTML1] THE STATUS OF FORCES Active duty: 194,461 Selected Marine Corps Reserve: 39,325 –Reservists on active duty: 2, 266 Marines around the world are conducting training, combat, and partnership operations from Alaska to Bulgaria this week. Here are some photo highlights of their work around the globe. Click on the map to see many more!
Gen. James Amos, commandant of the Marine Corps, reassured Marines in Hawaii last week that he was committed to keeping the distinctive MARPAT camouflage pattern for Marines, even as lawmakers consider adopting one single camo pattern for all the services. Amos has so far been quiet regarding the proposed changes, even as Navy Secretary Ray Mabus has come out in support of a common camouflage–or at least a reduction from the ten-plus patterns now being utilized across the services. But on July 15 he had some folksy fighting words regarding a change for troops aboard Marine Corps Base Hawaii. “We…
A Florida teenager who fought back against an alligator attack last week has his sights set on joining the Marine Corps. Andrew Hudson, 17, was swimming with friends in Little Econ River near Geneva, Fla., on July 9 when a alligator swam up behind him and pulled him under, Fox Orlando reported. Hudson told Fox he never saw the almost 10-foot gator approaching. [HTML1] “All I felt was a big thud and felt the pressure on my head, and just straight took me under,” Hudson told Fox. “I felt like the belly of him on my back and on my…
Everyone recognizes the distinctive dress blues uniform worn by male Marines: the high mandarin collar, the broad belt, the round white cover. Well, female Marines may get to wear that uniform too if all goes well with a wear test taking place now down at Marine Barracks Washington. All female Marines stationed at 8th and I have been wearing the white dress cover this parade season, and a select number have also donned tailored versions of the men’s dress blues jacket instead of the traditional women’s lapel blazer with white-collared shirt and necktab underneath. At the end of the summer…
A Young Marines program in Louisiana is getting attention after refusing to back down over a prayer. The Shreveport Times of Shreveport, La., reports that the Bossier, La., Young Marines program lost at least $15,000 worth of federal funding because of a voluntary prayer program cadets can recite. The decade-long institution of praying during program meetings has never been questioned or criticized, staff said, but a random audit of the program called its federal funding into question. According to reports, the Department of Justice requested that the word “God” be removed from the prayer in order to maintain the subsidy,…
A Marine who earned the nation’s second-highest military valor award for heroics in Iraq is questioning why a police officer who took the stand during George Zimmerman’s trial was wearing ribbons she did not earn, including one reserved primarily for World War II veterans. Like many Americans, Jeremiah Workman was watching Zimmerman’s trial play out on TV Monday. It’s a trial that has been long-awaited since Zimmerman, a Hispanic, was charged with second-degree murder in the 2012 shooting death of Trayvon Martin, a black 17-year-old. The case brought the debate on racism in the U.S. to the forefront in the…
Daran Wankum of Merriam Kansas has always wanted to be a U.S. Marine and follow the footsteps of his grandfather, reported KBMC 9 of Kansas City. Unfortunately, at age 18 and before he could get the chance to ship to boot camp, Wankum was diagnosed with a massive tumor located in the center of his brain. “I didn’t think at all. I just stopped the car and started crying, that’s what I did for 5 minutes,” Wankum told KMBC. His future seemed shattered because he knew this was a disqualifying factor for entering the Marine Corps. However, the Marine recruiters…
The storied “Nightmares” are set to deactivate this summer after 69 years of service during which the unit’s Marines saw combat in the Pacific, Korea, Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan. Formally designated Marine Attack Squadron 513, the unit which flies AV-8B Harriers out of Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., will be deactivated July 12, 2013 after their most recent deployment to Asia which concluded with their participation in Exercise Foal Eagle. The annual exercise is among the largest in the world and aims to strengthen interoperability between South Korean and U.S. forces in the region. The unit deployed to Asia…
The start of the 12th fighting season for U.S. forces in Afghanistan has meant continued transition for Marines in Helmand province — including mostly standing by as the Taliban launches attacks in the region. A large number of Taliban insurgents, along with foreign fighters, tried to overrun Sangin district this week, prompting a two-day engagement with Afghan National Security Forces, military officials said. The fight was outlined by a Wall Street Journal reporter in Afghanistan this week, launching it into the limelight. In past years — even last year — Marines would have been in the middle of the fracas.…
