Educator’s board the bus for Parris Island on day one of the Educator’s Workshop. (Photo by Vera Basilone)
In March I accompanied 65 teachers and other community leaders from Louisiana, Georgia, Mississippi, Florida, and South Carolina, as they endured a small part of Marine Corps Recruit Training during the 2017 Educator’s Workshop. These workshops are designed “to help educators and other influencers understand the mission of the Marine Corps and witness the transformation of young Americans into Marines,” according to Capt. Christopher Daniels, Executive Officer, RS Jacksonville, Florida. The educators spent two full days of touring and training on the base. On Friday they attended a Colors Ceremony and a Graduation Ceremony. The following post details my experiences as one of the participants.
On the first full day of the workshop I awoke at, “Holy smokes it’s dark out there!” I met the rest of the group for breakfast before boarding a white bus just like the ones I’ve seen bringing new recruits to Parris Island.
Lined up on the yellow footprints awaiting instruction. (Photo by Vera Basilone)
I sat in a window seat on the right side of the bus. The gray seatbacks were so high I could barely see the heads of the people sitting in front of me. The bus smelled of sweet perfume, aftershave and bug spray. Re-Essa Buckels, a newscaster from WALB in Albany, sat next to me armed with a full-size camera, tripod and GoPro with a head strap. In my fanny pack, I carried my iPhone and an old Canon PowerShot that sucked batteries down fast, but I was excited and ready to capture whatever my devices would allow.
During our approach to Parris Island, once familiar surroundings looked different in the dark. I tried to imagine what recruits would be thinking as they passed Parker’s gas station, the laundry mat, and Bilo Supermarket. Did they scan the marsh for alligators as they crossed the causeway? Were they nodding off on the bus and did the bright lights of the front gate cause them to jolt awake? My husband, a retired Gunnery Sergeant, suggested they may have been oblivious to their plight during those last moments as civilians.
Sergeant Jason Carty, a senior drill instructor, Recruit Processing Company, instructs educators during the Recruiting Station Baton Rouge and Jacksonville Educators Workshop (photo by Lance Cpl. Jack A. E. Rigsby)
Our bus stopped in front of Receiving. Overhead lights shocked my dilated eyes, the doors opened and a drill instructor came aboard. He told us to leave the vehicle on his command, “stand on the yellow footprints, women in front, men in the back.” He ordered us to respond, “Aye Sir!” whenever he spoke to us.
We lined up on the footprints. The Drill Instructor explained how to stand, where to look, what to say and what would be expected of us. His voice, fast and raspy, made me completely miss some of his instructions; I did my best to do whatever the rest of my group was doing. On his command, we were supposed to move forward into rows of four and stand side by side. “Do you understand?” he bellowed. Our group didn’t respond quickly enough. He repeated himself, and we screamed, “Aye Sir!” He gave commands. We moved like slugs. He yelled, “Faster!” We replied, “Aye Sir!”
Silver Hatches where recruits enter only once to begin the process of becoming Marines. (Photo by Vera Basilone)
Once in front of the silver receiving doors, we received more instructions from the Drill Instructor. Then the Recruit Processing First Sergeant took over and gave us an overview of what would happen next. It was still dark. SSgt Dixon informed us we just listened to the Yellow Footprints speech. He explained we wouldn’t go through the silver hatches unless we wanted to enlist. This is where the recruits entered. We walked through side doors and sat at tiny metal desks. SSgt Dixon described the recruit receiving process before we were given a quick tour of the building.
Next, we met our Drill Instructor escorts, SSgt Lewis and SSgt Simone King. Here I learned how difficult it is to follow instructions when multiple people are yelling and no one really knows what to do. SSgt King’s voiced boomed, “Every time I say 1, you scream 10 ma’am!” She ordered us to “Run!” but some of us misunderstood, (we thought she said 1), so we shouted, “10 ma’am!” Some of the educators heard the correct commands; we followed their lead and ran. We sprinted forward, away from the yellow footprints. When directed, we turned and ran back onto the yellow footprints. The Drill Instructor told us to stop, but we dilly-dallied, so she made us run again. It didn’t take long for us to tire out. This went on for what seemed like 13 weeks as she taught us to count off, requiring us to run back and forth when we didn’t do as we were told. Female recruits sat in the street right across from us cleaning their weapons. Their faces didn’t betray them, but I wondered if they laughed inside as they watched us fumble about as we ran to and fro.
SSgt Simone King, Senior Drill Instructor, 4th Battalion, Recruit Training Regiment, instructs attendees of the Recruiting Station Baton Rouge and Jacksonville Educators Workshop (Photo by Lance Cpl. Jack A. E. Rigsby)
The Drill Instructors put us through our paces until it was time to board the buses for a quick tour of 3rd Battalion. Before lunch, we attended briefs at the theater. By 11:30 I couldn’t wait to eat with the recruits at the Weapon’s Battalion Chow Hall. After chow, we marched to the ISMT where we fired the M-16A4 in a simulator. We bussed to Inchon range where we fired M-16A4s. By the time we attended a Water Survival Brief at 2:45 pm, I had thought I might fall asleep from exhaustion. But the day wasn’t over yet. We went to the Marine Corps Air Station Theater where a panel of Marines told us why they joined. Then the educators asked them questions. Before heading over to the Marine Corps Air Station Officer’s Club for dinner, we viewed F/A-18 jets housed in a hanger; we even watched a few jets take off.
During dinner, a Marine sat with us and answered questions. After eating, we took a peek in Santini’s Bar named after Pat Conroy’s character The Great Santini. By the end of the day, my arms were wobbly, my legs ached. I wondered if I could make it through the next day.
Practice firing at the Indoor Simulated Marksmanship Trainer during the Educator’s Workshop (Photo by Vera Basilone)
With aching muscles, I rallied Thursday morning, ready for action by the time we arrived on the Depot at 6:45 a.m. First, we watched a morning PT/ACT Presentation. Somehow at some point after the presentation, I wound up in the Third Battalion pit with the Jacksonville Educator’s doing jumping jacks and push-ups.
Next, we went to Blvd de France where we watched a Moto Day run. We toured the museum before attending a Family Day Ceremony. Later we observed a few MCMAP events, ate with the Marines in the Consolidated Chow Hall, and then made our way to the Rappel Tower where brave educators donned essential gear and rappelled down the wall. I put on a hard hat and climbed steps to the top to take pictures. The educators did a great job! But the day wasn’t over yet!
Educators with Recruiting Station Harrisburg prepare to descend on the rappel tower during the Educators’ Workshop, at Recruit Training Depot Parris Island, March 10, 2016. The rappel tower is one of many challenges recruits must overcome before earning the title of Marine (Photo by Cpl. Brandon Thomas)
After rappelling, we experienced the gas chamber. Although it had been 2 days since recruits went through at full strength CS gas, our eyes watered and our throats burned during our hurried trek through the building. It was not a pleasant experience. At the end of the day, we made a stop at the Marine Corps Exchange before dining at Traditions.
Friday we attended Colors then traveled to Peatross Parade Deck to witness a graduation. I thought about the young Marine I sat with during lunch on Wednesday along with all the others who challenged themselves, fighting through daily exhaustion to earn their ticket off of Parris Island.
Until this week, everything I knew about recruit training I learned from reading or speaking with Marines. The Educator’s Workshop provided a different perspective, I experienced the sounds of Drill Instructors shouting instructions, the smell of sweat and the exhaustion that cripples performance. It took over a week before my muscles stopped screaming at me but, I left the workshop with an enhanced appreciation for the men and women who mold recruits into basically trained Marines. I also have a better understanding of the physical and mental attributes necessary to become a Marine.
My special thanks to Brigadier General Austin “Sparky” Renforth Commanding General, Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island and Eastern Recruiting Region and to Lieutenant Colonel Stephen D. Bates, Executive Officer; 1stLt Savannah Frank, Public Affairs Officer; SSgt Jose Nava, Marketing and Public Affairs Chief; Cpl Adeline Smith & LCpl Jack Rigsby, combat photographers from the 6th Marine Corps District, Parris Island; Captain Alan W. Keith, Assistant Operations Officer and our group’s Drill Instructors SSgt Simone King & SSgt Lewis from the Recruit Training Regiment, Parris Island; Sgt Tony Simmons, Marketing and Public Affairs Representative, Recruiting Station Jacksonville, FL and all other Educator Workshop support personnel who made this event memorable.
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