Little did I know back in December of 1987 what I was getting myself into when I volunteered to go Recon. I had joined the Marine Corps with a guaranteed infantry contract. All I wanted to be was a rifleman. I got infantry, but the Corps made me a mortarman instead! So after a year of hiking around in the grunts with a 60mm mortar baseplate on my back I was ready for something else. First Recon Battalion needed more men, so on a whim, I volunteered.

Now this was pre-internet and Discovery Channel days. I honestly had no real idea of what I was getting myself into. But off I went in February of 1988, reporting to 1st Recon at Camp Talega on Camp Pendleton. My life was about to change. It was there that I was introduced to some lovely men like Cpl. Joseph and Gunnery Sgt. Cagle (whom we not so affectionately called Gunny Kegdog!). Those men still haunt my dreams.

Here’s a picture of Camp Talega from around the time I was there:

As you can see, Discovery Channel has a brief inside look at Recon School this Wednesday night. I am not sure to this day how I survived the experience. All I knew, once I got there, is that I was NOT going to quit and go back to being a mortarman in the infantry. As our motto said, and which we had to repeat endlessly, I learned to “Drive on, Recon!” And so I did. And out of a class of some 35 men, 13 of us were left standing on graduation day.

It was on that day, after having gone through a graduation ceremony, Gunny Kegdog was marching us down to the beer garden at Talega, when he stopped us short. There was indeed a keg of cold beer awaiting us in our triumph, but we could have none of it until we paid off the Gunny 500 “12 count body builders” that we still owed him. He did not wait for us to finish before he started enjoying the beer himself!

Here is a picture of a couple of men who endured and stood with me on that day, Kris “Maddog” Moody and “Ranger” John Benish.

So what did I learn from my experience. I learned how to suffer and endure. It is something that I draw upon to this day. When things get hard or I find myself facing difficult circumstances, I look back and remember that I am a Recon Marine. I can “drive on.” I know how to relate to the words of St. Paul, who said to Timothy:

Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.  No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him (2 Timothy 2:1-4 ESV).

That the last thing I’ll share is The Recon Creed.

Realizing it is my choice and my choice alone
to be a Reconnaissance Marine,
I accept all challenges involved with this profession.
Forever shall I strive to maintain the tremendous reputation
of those who went before me.

Exceeding beyond the limitations
set down by others shall be my goal.
Sacrificing personal comforts and dedicating myself
to the completion of the reconnaissance mission shall be my life.
Physical fitness, mental attitude, and high ethics –

The title of Recon Marine is my honor.

Conquering all obstacles, both large and small,
I shall never quit.
To quit, to surrender, to give up is to fail.
To be a Recon Marine is to surpass failure;
To overcome, to adapt and to do whatever it takes
to complete the mission.

On the battlefield, as in all areas of life,
I shall stand tall above the competition.
Through professional pride, integrity, and teamwork,
I shall be the example
for all Marines to emulate.

Never shall I forget the principles
I accepted to become a Recon Marine.
Honor, Perseverance, Spirit and Heart.

A Recon Marine can speak without saying a word
and achieve what others can only imagine.

Semper Fi,

Shane+