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BARWANAH, Iraq (Feb. 1, 2006) -- The Marines of 2nd Platoon, Company L, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment constantly search the palm groves and desert valleys here for insurgents and their weapon of choice … roadside bombs. Leading one of the platoon’s fire teams during hunts for weapons caches is Woodland, Calif., native, Lance Cpl. Sam E. Smithson. His fire team, with the help of the squad, is responsible for finding at least eight different caches since arriving in the area. In the last month, Smithson was part of two different operations, leading his Marines in finding many caches. His...

RAMADI, Iraq (Feb. 1, 2006) -- Shortly after completing his basic training and Marine infantry training, Pvt. Ariel Inclan was told he would be deployed to Iraq. Since his arrival here to Al Anbar’s provincial capital in August 2005, Iraq has proven to be everything he expected it to be. From combat to the concrete block and stucco homes lining dirt roads, most of his preconceived notions about Iraq have proven true. “I had a certain feeling about what Iraq would be like,” Inclan said. “And if I had to describe it, this would be it.” For the last four...

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (Jan. 25, 2006) -- There they were, moving into an area known to be a hot spot for insurgent activity when it happened Oct. 2, 2005. Gunfire, mortars and rocket-propelled grenades began flying around them as they took cover and started their assault on the enemy’s position in Karmah, Iraq. Lance Cpl. Michael A. McGraw, a 20-year-old automatic rifleman with 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, stood up early on in the attack to begin the movement on the enemy when he was struck in the lower leg by heavy machine gun fire. McGraw was...

FALLUJAH, Iraq (Jan. 24, 2006) -- “You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, 'I have lived through this horror; I can take the next thing that comes along.' You must do the thing you think you cannot do,” Eleanor Roosevelt once wrote. For one Marine, past experiences have developed him into a capable team leader. Drawing on what Marines he served under taught him, Lance Cpl. Jeffrey M. Roberts, a 21-year-old Destin, Fla., native, has become a team leader for...

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (Jan. 20, 2006) -- Major Paul T. Deutsch of Addison, Ill., the disbursing officer for Camp Lejeune, was awarded the Bronze Star Medal during an awards ceremony Jan. 18 for his service while deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom 04 - 06. Deutsch deployed with Headquarters and Service Battalion, 2nd Marine Logistics Group, and served as the Service Company commander. He oversaw five platoons including disbursers, postal clerks, exchange salesmen, dental technicians and mortuary affairs specialists. Service Company covered the entire Al Anbar province during their seven-month stay, and achieved amazing things, according...

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (Jan. 17, 2006) -- When Marines deploy in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, they all try to bring a piece of home with them, something that reminds them not only of what they left behind, but also what they’re fighting for. Unfortunately for some Marines, they end up bringing a piece of Iraq home, in the form of pieces of metal from a roadside bomb or battle scars from enemy attacks. Sergeant Matthew P. Dalrymple, 26, of Chillicothe, Ohio was awarded the Purple Heart medal with a gold star in lieu of second award...

HADITHA DAM, Iraq (Jan. 16, 2006) -- The job of lead vehicle gunner for a convoy in Iraq is one of the most dangerous and demanding jobs for a Marine, as insurgents continue to place roadside bombs aimed at injuring Marines, Iraqi soldiers, police and civilians. Norwalk, Calif., native, Cpl. Jason M. Farias, isn’t just the lead gunner on some convoys, he is the first line of defense for 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment’s commander as he travels to visit Marines in the area. With his M-240G machine gun, he sits high above the lead vehicle to provide fire support...

AL ANBAR PROVINCE, Iraq (Jan. 13, 2006) -- Any drill instructor can tell you that making warriors out of young men and women fresh from the civilian world is challenging, but ultimately a rewarding task. The long hours, the high expectations and the cost of failure all weigh heavily before the ultimate day of graduation and the turning over of their charge to the wide world mark their success. Marines from D Company, 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif., can perhaps understand a little more clearly exactly what kind of challenge it is to train...

CAMP BAHARIA, Iraq (Jan. 12, 2006) -- The right to wear the eagle, globe and anchor and be considered among the world’s finest is a privilege that is hard earned. Lance Cpl. Josslyn D. Selzer, a 19-year-old Boone, N.C., native with Headquarters and Service Company, 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, is living out that dream. “I have always wanted to be a Marine, since I was about 8,” said Selzer, an ammunition technician for the battalion. “My sister, Deadra, is in the Marines; she joined a year-and-a-half before me, but I knew I wanted to join long before she ever...

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (Jan. 9, 2006) -- Navy Lt. John G. Meeting of Mansfield, Ohio, the comptroller for the Naval Dental Center was awarded the Bronze Star Medal during an awards ceremony Dec. 16 for his service while deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom 04 - 06. In January 2005, Meeting deployed as the commander for Surgical Company A, 2nd Medical Battalion, 2nd Marine Logistics Group. Meeting’s company deployed to Kuwait to relieve a National Guard unit. “There were about 100,000 service members in Kuwait at the time we got there, so it was a little...

CAMP AL QA’IM, Iraq (Jan. 10, 2006) -- The commander of 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, Lt. Col. Julian D. Alford, has his hands full as the senior commander in the Al Qa’im region. Almost daily, Alford moves from battle position to battle position, meeting to meeting … managing and controlling his forces and the reconstruction efforts in his area of western Al Anbar province. Keeping him safe is his personnel security detachment or Praetorian as they’re called. Lexington, N.C., native, Sgt. Phillip J. Michael, is a member of Praetorian. “We’re tasked to escort (Alford) and provide security for him...

CAMP BLUE DIAMOND, AR RAMADI, Iraq (Jan. 10, 2006) -- When Lance Cpl. Paul E. Harden was told he would be leaving for Iraq with Truck Company from the Headquarters Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, he didn’t know what to think. He was young, enthusiastic and relatively new to the Marine Corps. The only images he could conjure up were those of the resulting damage left behind after the battle for Fallujah in November of 2004. When the 21-year-old, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., native and motor-transport mechanic got here in February last year, he was surprised. Instead of demolished buildings and a...

CAMP TAQADDUM, Iraq (Dec. 30, 2005) -- There are more than 22,000 Marines with II Marine Expeditionary Force units deployed in Iraq. Many of them are serving on the front lines, outside the wire, however, they would not be operating successfully without having proper administrative support backing them. Administrative Marines like Lance Cpl. Lee R. LaValley Jr., an administration clerk with 8th Engineer Support Battalion, 2nd Marine Logistics Group (Forward), routinely ensure Marines within their respective units have continuous administrative support. “I like working here compared to Camp Lejeune, [N.C.],” LaValley admits. “Although the weather is ridiculous, I know this...

CAMP FALLUJAH, Iraq (Dec. 21, 2005) -- Marines are known for their ability to adapt and overcome any challenge. A Marine from Reydon, Okla. is living up to that ability while deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom with Regimental Combat Team 8. Lance Cpl. Steven L. Bentley, a 20-year-old radio operator, is proving he is flexible in his job. He is not working in his primary military occupational specialty. Instead, he is developing critical skills in another MOS -- 0861, fire support man. “As a fire support man, I am part of a team that coordinates all indirect fire...

HUSAYBAH, Iraq (Dec. 8, 2005) -- Western Iraq, along the Syrian border, is a far cry from the mountains of Washington and sunny days and summer afternoons partying on a lake. The physical distance is measured in thousands of miles, but the difference in atmosphere, environment and mentality may as well be a galaxy away. Corporal Jason L. Johnson, a reservist from Auburn, Wash., closed that gap when he volunteered for mobilization and assignment June 2005 to 6th Civil Affairs Group, out of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, N.C. It brought him to this small, dusty city in Iraq’s Al...

CAMP HABBANIYAH, Iraq (Dec. 21, 2005) -- Marines deployed on a combat tour to Iraq find many different ways to relax and spend their free time. They play video games, watch movies, read books and even take online college courses. One Marine, though, uses his free time to make a direct impact oh the mission to turn Iraq over to a stable government capable of protecting its citizens. Cpl. Russell R. Hall, a wire man assigned to a six-man communications detachment with the 2nd Marine Division Training Center here, spends his free time ‘instructing the instructors’ as members of the...

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (Dec. 20, 2005) -- When Donald R. Williams, Jr. played basketball for Marion-Abramson High School in his hometown of New Orleans, he had everything all planned out. The young basketball star wanted to attend Louisiana State University on a basketball scholarship and then the sky was the limit. He soon found out that things don’t always go one’s way. After graduating in 1997 and receiving only a partial scholarship for basketball, Williams decided it was time to look at other options. “Because I didn’t get the full scholarship I needed to go to college,...

CAMP KOREAN VILLAGE, Iraq (Dec. 14, 2005) -- Many people traveling to America arrive seeking personal gain and economic opportunity. Three weeks after Lance Cpl. Pascal R. Cisse arrived in the States from Germany, he elbowed his way into Marine Corps recruit training and eventually into the famed Marine Corps infantry. “The recruiter told me I could go to boot camp in two months,” said the native of Dakar, Senegal. “I told him I wanted to join as soon as possible.” The Marine recruiter he contacted in Tukwila, Wash., highlighted some of the job opportunities offered by the Marines, but...

HAQLANIYAH, Iraq (Dec. 14, 2005) -- Woodland, Calif., native Lance Cpl. Chris P. Stabler was leading his team down a street here Nov. 27 when suddenly the unusual sound of cheering crowds drew the attention of the patrol. When Stabler looked down the street, the sounds they had heard were citizens cheering on their family members during a game of street volleyball. It is because of Marines like 21-year-old Stabler that the streets here are safe enough for simple recreational activities. Stabler and other Marines with Company I, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, go on these security patrols every day...

AR RAMADI, Iraq (Dec. 14, 2005) -- As Operation Iraqi Freedom moves closer to 2006, the Marines of 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment are working more and more with local platoons of Iraqi Army soldiers in order to prepare them for the day when coalition forces leave Iraq. While most Iraqi soldiers go through rudimentary training, nothing replaces the experience and knowledge gained by patrolling through hostile neighborhoods. To help them gain that knowledge, Marines from Company I, including Lance Cpl. Ryan Burg, routinely patrol alongside the IA to guide them through the lessons the Marines have learned during their...