thedrifter
05-17-09, 09:12 AM
The Marines Who Make Marines
ROBIN BERES TIMES-DISPATCH COLUMNIST
Published: May 17, 2009
In a recent column, I attempted to relate a little of what happens during a Marine recruit's transformation from civilian to warrior at Marine Corps Recruit Depot (MCRD) Parris Island. Since then, I have heard from many former and current Marines who remembered well their time on that island. In what may seem a baffling paradox, just about everyone recalled those seemingly endless weeks of hardship and misery with genuine fondness.
Ed Gibbons, a recruit at Parris Island 64 years ago (but with memories as clear as any Marine I heard from), wrote that, once on that island, one learned quickly that the world no longer revolved around the individual. "Mom and Dad might have thought you were special -- but as a Parris Island recruit, you were pretty much a worm -- a worthless worm."
Almost all noted that boot camp was the toughest challenge they ever experienced. Some remembered the heat and others recalled the long days. Still others remembered the physical tests. Mike Robinson recounted his Parris Island days as "filled with oppressive heat, intimate humidity, utter chaos, perpetual yelling, and sunburned skin, all the while being followed by clouds of starving, buzzing sand fleas with their GPS vectored on my ear canals."
Above all else, every Marine remembered his drill instructors (DIs). Marines who had graduated 40 years ago or more still recalled the names of their DIs and spoke of what role models they had been.
So, who trains the DI and what is involved in that process? I asked that question -- and several others -- of Maj. William Nash, the director of the Drill Instructor School at Parris Island (there is a second DI school at MCRD San Diego). Nash, a prior-enlisted Marine and former DI himself, was kind enough to provide information, canvass his staff for answers, and provide his own input to my many questions.
The Drill Instructor School was formally established at Parris Island in 1952. Over the years it has increased from a four-week course to the current curriculum that is slightly more than 11 very busy weeks. A typical training day begins about 0400 and ends at 1730. The core of the instruction and training that was established in the original 1950s course syllabus is similar to today's curriculum. Emphasis remains on recruit training, drill, general military training, and physical fitness. The entire course is based upon a foundation of leadership. The primary duty of the DI is -- as always -- to make Marines.
DIs come from all Marine occupational fields -- from infantryman to cook to mechanic. They must be between the ranks of sergeant (E5) and gunnery sergeant (E7). The average age of a drill instructor candidate is 28.9, with an average of 9.7 years in service. He must be a high school graduate, disciplined, intelligent, and display a strong presence of mind. To be accepted into the program one must have a stable family life, exhibit financial responsibility, be physically and mentally fit, and display a sharp personal appearance. A DI candidate must pass a stiff screening process and be recommended by his prior command.
Training days for DIs are intense. They are immersed in values-based training with the Marine Corps core values of honor, courage, and commitment threaded throughout. They undergo modeling scenarios that test their own core values. They learn to take personal ownership of these core values and must display an ability to impart them to recruits.
The core values play into the warrior ethos of the Marine Corps. Marines are taught that their primary job is to fight and win -- that's what they do and who they are. But they also learn that to be a Marine means to do what is right -- even in the face of overwhelming adversity. As Nash points out, drill instructors are not only responsible for making better Marines, they ultimately produce better citizens who will someday return to society.
Upon successful completion of the school, a DI earns his field hat -- also known as the Smokey the Bear cover. This headgear has been the authorized cover of DIs since 1956, and in a nod to tradition, is reminiscent of the "Old Corps" campaign hat worn in pre-WWII days. Austere and imposing, the shape of the hat also serves to shade the eyes and neck from the sun. Female drill instructors have been authorized to wear the "Smokey" since 1996.
Once a DI begins training Marines, life really gets hectic. It is not unusual for a DI to work a 100-plus-hour week for the majority of the 13 weeks he is training a platoon. He will spend most hours of the day with his recruits -- so much so that the "boots" are often convinced that DIs have no need of sleep.
Balancing family life under such hectic conditions is tough. The DI and his family quickly learn to appreciate any spare time they may spend with one another. The Corps has recognized the strains this places upon families and assistance is readily available through Marine Corps Family Team Building programs.
And of course, sustaining those working hours for an entire three-year tour of duty would be impossible -- even for a Marine. After a platoon graduates, a DI will spend the next three to seven weeks working closer to a normal 40-hour week. During this period, he will catch up on training or perform other duties at MCRD.
DIs are held to extremely high standards of conduct. As the major pointed out, since 1775, the Marines have been the stewards of this nation's most precious resource: our sons and daughters. DIs must follow strict guidelines and physical or verbal abuse is not tolerated. Although the drill instructor's voice may be loud, it is in fact a trained art. DIs use their voices to get the attention of recruits and ensure immediate obedience to orders. Known as the "command voice," it comes from the diaphragm and, once learned, can be switched on or off in an instant. DIs refer to that voice as their weapon of management.
Prior to the beginning of a training cycle, all DIs -- in the presence of their recruits -- take the following pledge: "These recruits are entrusted to my care. I will train them to the best of my ability. I will demand of them, and demonstrate by my own example, the highest standards of personal conduct, morality, and professional skill."
So, why would one volunteer for such strenuous duty? They do it for the challenge and the pride of transforming civilians into United States Marines and, in doing so, giving young men and women the opportunity to serve a cause far greater than themselves -- that of supporting and defending the Constitution.
The greatest reward may be the feeling of elation experienced when a DI congratulates the newest Marines at the conclusion of the Crucible. There is no finer example of tradition being passed on than when a proud DI passes the eagle, globe, and anchor emblem on to the next generation of Marines -- a generation that he has played an essential role in creating.
Contact Robin Beres at (804) 649-6305 or mberes@timesdispatch.com . She is a retired Navy chief petty officer.
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Ellie
ROBIN BERES TIMES-DISPATCH COLUMNIST
Published: May 17, 2009
In a recent column, I attempted to relate a little of what happens during a Marine recruit's transformation from civilian to warrior at Marine Corps Recruit Depot (MCRD) Parris Island. Since then, I have heard from many former and current Marines who remembered well their time on that island. In what may seem a baffling paradox, just about everyone recalled those seemingly endless weeks of hardship and misery with genuine fondness.
Ed Gibbons, a recruit at Parris Island 64 years ago (but with memories as clear as any Marine I heard from), wrote that, once on that island, one learned quickly that the world no longer revolved around the individual. "Mom and Dad might have thought you were special -- but as a Parris Island recruit, you were pretty much a worm -- a worthless worm."
Almost all noted that boot camp was the toughest challenge they ever experienced. Some remembered the heat and others recalled the long days. Still others remembered the physical tests. Mike Robinson recounted his Parris Island days as "filled with oppressive heat, intimate humidity, utter chaos, perpetual yelling, and sunburned skin, all the while being followed by clouds of starving, buzzing sand fleas with their GPS vectored on my ear canals."
Above all else, every Marine remembered his drill instructors (DIs). Marines who had graduated 40 years ago or more still recalled the names of their DIs and spoke of what role models they had been.
So, who trains the DI and what is involved in that process? I asked that question -- and several others -- of Maj. William Nash, the director of the Drill Instructor School at Parris Island (there is a second DI school at MCRD San Diego). Nash, a prior-enlisted Marine and former DI himself, was kind enough to provide information, canvass his staff for answers, and provide his own input to my many questions.
The Drill Instructor School was formally established at Parris Island in 1952. Over the years it has increased from a four-week course to the current curriculum that is slightly more than 11 very busy weeks. A typical training day begins about 0400 and ends at 1730. The core of the instruction and training that was established in the original 1950s course syllabus is similar to today's curriculum. Emphasis remains on recruit training, drill, general military training, and physical fitness. The entire course is based upon a foundation of leadership. The primary duty of the DI is -- as always -- to make Marines.
DIs come from all Marine occupational fields -- from infantryman to cook to mechanic. They must be between the ranks of sergeant (E5) and gunnery sergeant (E7). The average age of a drill instructor candidate is 28.9, with an average of 9.7 years in service. He must be a high school graduate, disciplined, intelligent, and display a strong presence of mind. To be accepted into the program one must have a stable family life, exhibit financial responsibility, be physically and mentally fit, and display a sharp personal appearance. A DI candidate must pass a stiff screening process and be recommended by his prior command.
Training days for DIs are intense. They are immersed in values-based training with the Marine Corps core values of honor, courage, and commitment threaded throughout. They undergo modeling scenarios that test their own core values. They learn to take personal ownership of these core values and must display an ability to impart them to recruits.
The core values play into the warrior ethos of the Marine Corps. Marines are taught that their primary job is to fight and win -- that's what they do and who they are. But they also learn that to be a Marine means to do what is right -- even in the face of overwhelming adversity. As Nash points out, drill instructors are not only responsible for making better Marines, they ultimately produce better citizens who will someday return to society.
Upon successful completion of the school, a DI earns his field hat -- also known as the Smokey the Bear cover. This headgear has been the authorized cover of DIs since 1956, and in a nod to tradition, is reminiscent of the "Old Corps" campaign hat worn in pre-WWII days. Austere and imposing, the shape of the hat also serves to shade the eyes and neck from the sun. Female drill instructors have been authorized to wear the "Smokey" since 1996.
Once a DI begins training Marines, life really gets hectic. It is not unusual for a DI to work a 100-plus-hour week for the majority of the 13 weeks he is training a platoon. He will spend most hours of the day with his recruits -- so much so that the "boots" are often convinced that DIs have no need of sleep.
Balancing family life under such hectic conditions is tough. The DI and his family quickly learn to appreciate any spare time they may spend with one another. The Corps has recognized the strains this places upon families and assistance is readily available through Marine Corps Family Team Building programs.
And of course, sustaining those working hours for an entire three-year tour of duty would be impossible -- even for a Marine. After a platoon graduates, a DI will spend the next three to seven weeks working closer to a normal 40-hour week. During this period, he will catch up on training or perform other duties at MCRD.
DIs are held to extremely high standards of conduct. As the major pointed out, since 1775, the Marines have been the stewards of this nation's most precious resource: our sons and daughters. DIs must follow strict guidelines and physical or verbal abuse is not tolerated. Although the drill instructor's voice may be loud, it is in fact a trained art. DIs use their voices to get the attention of recruits and ensure immediate obedience to orders. Known as the "command voice," it comes from the diaphragm and, once learned, can be switched on or off in an instant. DIs refer to that voice as their weapon of management.
Prior to the beginning of a training cycle, all DIs -- in the presence of their recruits -- take the following pledge: "These recruits are entrusted to my care. I will train them to the best of my ability. I will demand of them, and demonstrate by my own example, the highest standards of personal conduct, morality, and professional skill."
So, why would one volunteer for such strenuous duty? They do it for the challenge and the pride of transforming civilians into United States Marines and, in doing so, giving young men and women the opportunity to serve a cause far greater than themselves -- that of supporting and defending the Constitution.
The greatest reward may be the feeling of elation experienced when a DI congratulates the newest Marines at the conclusion of the Crucible. There is no finer example of tradition being passed on than when a proud DI passes the eagle, globe, and anchor emblem on to the next generation of Marines -- a generation that he has played an essential role in creating.
Contact Robin Beres at (804) 649-6305 or mberes@timesdispatch.com . She is a retired Navy chief petty officer.
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Ellie