thedrifter
12-16-05, 02:27 PM
Sgt.Maj. 'Ooh-rah' named Vet of Year
MCRD San Diego
Story by Lance Cpl. Kaitlyn M. Scarboro
MARINE CORPS RECRUIT DEPOT SAN DIEGO (Dec. 16, 2005) -- He stirred up a ruckus before a recent Marine Corps Birthday Ball celebration. Junior Marines waited to see what the sergeant major would look like in his dress blues - to size up his ribbons and see what missions, operations and wars he had participated in.
The sergeant major is revered around the depot for his never-ending motivation and dedication to the Corps, and for his volunteer efforts and selflessness toward others.
Retired Sgt. Maj. Bill Paxton was declared Veteran of the Year 2005-2006 by the
Veterans Association in a ceremony near Balboa Park Nov. 4.
Tim Sprague, commander of the Mission Valley Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3787 nominated Paxton for the award, and association voters selected him over a Medal of Honor recipient and a Pearl Harbor survivor.
"When he got into the top five, I almost lost my voice. When he was announced, I think I stood up and screamed the hardest," said Sprague.
"When he won ... I told him he's no longer a Marine. He didn't like that too well because of the fact that he's representing all of the veterans."
The VFW post intends to make a "Bill Paxton, Veteran of the Year" banner to hang outside the post, with patches from each military branch encircling his name.
"We'd make sure the Marine Corps was the center one," said Sprague.
Paxton is a member of the Marine Corps League, Drill Instructors Association, the Kiwanis and Lions Clubs. He is Pound Keeper of the Military Order of the Devil Dogs and a member of the Military Order of the Cooties and other veteran organizations focused on community help.
"He belongs to almost every organization you can think of," said Donald E. Tetschlag, a past commander of VFW Post 3787. "I don't know how he could have a job and still do all this."
Paxton said it's a great honor to help those in need and to help fellow veterans.
"I thought it was an honor to be nominated two years in a row," said Paxton. "I feel that we can never do enough for our veterans in a community which we serve to protect. To be selected amongst all those nominees that were all so highly qualified, to be able to represent all the veterans - past, present and future - it came as a shock.
"Our job is never finished as a veteran. There's an old saying: 'Once a Marine, always a Marine.' That also applies to 'once a veteran, always a veteran.'"
As a veteran of foreign wars, Paxton served as a Marine Corps infantryman and ultimately has many stories to share with younger generations of Marines, including his son, a first sergeant in the Marine Corps Reserve.
Paxton assisted in typhoon relief in Guam in 1962. He also served in Lebanon in 1968 and two combat tours in Vietnam.
"When we weren't actually on security duty, we volunteered to help build the church back and the schools," said Paxton of his time in Guam. "As a matter of fact, it was the Marine Corps birthday. We were at the ball and they said take your, wives, spouses and loved ones home, and be back in 30 minutes. Romeo recall, we're mounting out. Destination unknown, mission impossible."
Paxton was guide for his boot camp platoon in the "Ernie Pyle" Company, named after an honored combat correspondent, and he served as an infantryman, military policeman and a drill instructor in the same company with actor R. Lee Ermey.
The retired Marine said he is grateful for the chance to still work with young Marines at the depot, and he finds motivation being around future veterans of America.
"The junior Marines have proven that when things get tough, the tough get going," said Paxton. "So on behalf of all Marines ... I want to thank them for doing an outstanding service to our country and to our armed forces of the United States of America. Semper Fidelis. Ooh-rah."
http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/image1.nsf/Lookup/20051216141023/$file/02Paxton01_lr.jpg
Retired Sgt. Maj. Bill E. Paxton is the veteran of the year. Photo by: Lance Cpl. Kaitlyn M. Scarboro
Ellie
MCRD San Diego
Story by Lance Cpl. Kaitlyn M. Scarboro
MARINE CORPS RECRUIT DEPOT SAN DIEGO (Dec. 16, 2005) -- He stirred up a ruckus before a recent Marine Corps Birthday Ball celebration. Junior Marines waited to see what the sergeant major would look like in his dress blues - to size up his ribbons and see what missions, operations and wars he had participated in.
The sergeant major is revered around the depot for his never-ending motivation and dedication to the Corps, and for his volunteer efforts and selflessness toward others.
Retired Sgt. Maj. Bill Paxton was declared Veteran of the Year 2005-2006 by the
Veterans Association in a ceremony near Balboa Park Nov. 4.
Tim Sprague, commander of the Mission Valley Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3787 nominated Paxton for the award, and association voters selected him over a Medal of Honor recipient and a Pearl Harbor survivor.
"When he got into the top five, I almost lost my voice. When he was announced, I think I stood up and screamed the hardest," said Sprague.
"When he won ... I told him he's no longer a Marine. He didn't like that too well because of the fact that he's representing all of the veterans."
The VFW post intends to make a "Bill Paxton, Veteran of the Year" banner to hang outside the post, with patches from each military branch encircling his name.
"We'd make sure the Marine Corps was the center one," said Sprague.
Paxton is a member of the Marine Corps League, Drill Instructors Association, the Kiwanis and Lions Clubs. He is Pound Keeper of the Military Order of the Devil Dogs and a member of the Military Order of the Cooties and other veteran organizations focused on community help.
"He belongs to almost every organization you can think of," said Donald E. Tetschlag, a past commander of VFW Post 3787. "I don't know how he could have a job and still do all this."
Paxton said it's a great honor to help those in need and to help fellow veterans.
"I thought it was an honor to be nominated two years in a row," said Paxton. "I feel that we can never do enough for our veterans in a community which we serve to protect. To be selected amongst all those nominees that were all so highly qualified, to be able to represent all the veterans - past, present and future - it came as a shock.
"Our job is never finished as a veteran. There's an old saying: 'Once a Marine, always a Marine.' That also applies to 'once a veteran, always a veteran.'"
As a veteran of foreign wars, Paxton served as a Marine Corps infantryman and ultimately has many stories to share with younger generations of Marines, including his son, a first sergeant in the Marine Corps Reserve.
Paxton assisted in typhoon relief in Guam in 1962. He also served in Lebanon in 1968 and two combat tours in Vietnam.
"When we weren't actually on security duty, we volunteered to help build the church back and the schools," said Paxton of his time in Guam. "As a matter of fact, it was the Marine Corps birthday. We were at the ball and they said take your, wives, spouses and loved ones home, and be back in 30 minutes. Romeo recall, we're mounting out. Destination unknown, mission impossible."
Paxton was guide for his boot camp platoon in the "Ernie Pyle" Company, named after an honored combat correspondent, and he served as an infantryman, military policeman and a drill instructor in the same company with actor R. Lee Ermey.
The retired Marine said he is grateful for the chance to still work with young Marines at the depot, and he finds motivation being around future veterans of America.
"The junior Marines have proven that when things get tough, the tough get going," said Paxton. "So on behalf of all Marines ... I want to thank them for doing an outstanding service to our country and to our armed forces of the United States of America. Semper Fidelis. Ooh-rah."
http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/image1.nsf/Lookup/20051216141023/$file/02Paxton01_lr.jpg
Retired Sgt. Maj. Bill E. Paxton is the veteran of the year. Photo by: Lance Cpl. Kaitlyn M. Scarboro
Ellie