thedrifter
04-19-07, 06:36 AM
Last Updated: 7:02 am | Thursday, April 19, 2007
Marine re-ups at Reds game
BY HOWARD WILKINSON | HWILKINSON@ENQUIRER.COM
Sgt. Brian Equez will never forget the first time he raised his right hand and enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps, 7½ years ago in his native Texas.
But when he re-enlisted Wednesday night, it might have been even more memorable.
The 25-year-old Marine from Northern Kentucky, a technician with Communications Company, 4th Marine Division, which is based at the Marine Reserve Center in Walnut Hills, took the oath on the field at Great American Ball Park before Wednesday night's Reds-Astros game.
"I'm a big baseball fan, and I want all the fans there to share in the moment, and to leave with a positive feeling about those of us who serve in uniform," Equez said.
There was no formal ceremony broadcast over the ballpark's public address system, but Equez stood on the field before the game next to the Astros' dugout.
As his friends John and Carol Prazynski of Hamilton looked on, Equez's commanding officer, Maj. David Morgan, administered the oath. The Prazynskis' Marine son, Taylor, was killed in Iraq in May 2005.
After re-enlisting, Equez snapped to attention and saluted the flag as the national anthem was sung, just a few feet away from one of his boyhood heroes, Craig Biggio, the Astros' second baseman.
"I wasn't close enough to him, but it was a bang anyway to be there," Equez said.
Marines who re-enlist often get to choose a unique setting for their re-enlistment ceremonies - some have chosen Mount Suribachi at Iwo Jima, scene of the Marines' most memorable World War II battle, or the Marine Corps Monument near Arlington National Cemetery.
Equez, the son of Ecuadorian immigrants, was born and raised in Humble, Texas, a small town just north of Houston. When he looked at a Reds schedule and saw that his beloved Houston Astros were coming to town for a two-game series, he decided to task the Reds for permission to have his ceremony on the field.
"I couldn't pass up the chance," Equez said.
Ellie
Marine re-ups at Reds game
BY HOWARD WILKINSON | HWILKINSON@ENQUIRER.COM
Sgt. Brian Equez will never forget the first time he raised his right hand and enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps, 7½ years ago in his native Texas.
But when he re-enlisted Wednesday night, it might have been even more memorable.
The 25-year-old Marine from Northern Kentucky, a technician with Communications Company, 4th Marine Division, which is based at the Marine Reserve Center in Walnut Hills, took the oath on the field at Great American Ball Park before Wednesday night's Reds-Astros game.
"I'm a big baseball fan, and I want all the fans there to share in the moment, and to leave with a positive feeling about those of us who serve in uniform," Equez said.
There was no formal ceremony broadcast over the ballpark's public address system, but Equez stood on the field before the game next to the Astros' dugout.
As his friends John and Carol Prazynski of Hamilton looked on, Equez's commanding officer, Maj. David Morgan, administered the oath. The Prazynskis' Marine son, Taylor, was killed in Iraq in May 2005.
After re-enlisting, Equez snapped to attention and saluted the flag as the national anthem was sung, just a few feet away from one of his boyhood heroes, Craig Biggio, the Astros' second baseman.
"I wasn't close enough to him, but it was a bang anyway to be there," Equez said.
Marines who re-enlist often get to choose a unique setting for their re-enlistment ceremonies - some have chosen Mount Suribachi at Iwo Jima, scene of the Marines' most memorable World War II battle, or the Marine Corps Monument near Arlington National Cemetery.
Equez, the son of Ecuadorian immigrants, was born and raised in Humble, Texas, a small town just north of Houston. When he looked at a Reds schedule and saw that his beloved Houston Astros were coming to town for a two-game series, he decided to task the Reds for permission to have his ceremony on the field.
"I couldn't pass up the chance," Equez said.
Ellie