Program geared to help Marines adjust

By Rex Barber
Press Staff Writer
rbarber@johnsoncitypress.com

“Once a Marine, always a Marine.”

That mantra is true long after a Marine leaves his duties in uniform. But it is not always easy to transition to a civilian version of life, especially if the Marine Corps is all a person has ever known throughout adulthood.

That’s where Gunnery Sgt. Travis Thompson can help out his fellow Marines. Thompson is the Home Town Link officer for the Roanoke, Va., chapter of Marine For Life, a national program seeking to assist the 26,000 Marines honorably discharged each year with the transition from active duty to civilian life.

Thompson took over the post in June. The Roanoke chapter encompasses everything from Johnson City to Roanoke. The program was begun in 2001 and has been a huge success among Marines, Thompson said.

“They hit civilian life and then reality hits in,” Thompson said. “They don’t know anything else. We don’t want to say ‘Thanks for your service and good luck.’ ”

The program assists in finding jobs, providing health care and education benefits information Marines have earned, connecting Marines to a mentor and providing someone to talk to who understands their situation.

The mentor program is an invaluable resource that pairs veteran Marines with younger ones to provide advice and conversation.

One of the most valuable aspects of the program is the employment searches, Thompson said. The Marine For Life Web site provides a searchable database where employers can list job openings for free, instead of the $300 to $400 normally charged for job postings. Marines can also post their resumes.

More than 5,000 employers and about 1,000 mentors are registered with the program.

“By doing that and possibly hiring a Marine ... they can support the Marine Corps, and the quality of the person they’re hiring is very high,” Thompson said.

A Marine does not have to be recently discharged to qualify for participation in the program. Thompson knows of Marines who served in the 1980s getting use from the program.

“So it’s not just recent guys getting out,” Thompson said. “I’ve heard of some guys helping guys from the Vietnam era. We also assist with Navy sailors that have served with the Marines.”

Thompson’s role as the Home Town Link officer has taken him to nearly every destination in his area of responsibility. Even though he is the physical education teacher at Boones Creek Middle School, Thompson said he does not care to travel as far as needed to help out a fellow Marine.

“It’s part time, but you never know how much you’re going to work or travel,” Thompson said. “You’re constantly doing something.”

Transitioning from a role as a Marine to a civilian can be more stressful and difficult for some, Thompson said, and he wants every Marine in the area to know his services are available.

“It depends on the person,” Thompson said of the difficulty of the transition process. “Some may think it’s going to be easier than it actually is. Some think it’s easier than others. I think it’s probably harder for the ones who enlisted directly out of high school into the Marine Corps.”

Thompson, who is in the Marine Reserve and is a 13-year veteran, said he may get have three or four Marines sign up each month for the program, but one provides more and more contacts for Marines to use to their advantage and that network stretches across the nation.

“It’s building a network,” he said. “It’s a Marine-friendly network.”

For more information on Marines For Life, visit www.m4l.usmc.mil. To contact Thompson to utilize or participate in the program call (540) 295-9267, or e-mail roanoke@m4lmail.com.

Ellie