CG MCRD PISC 188th Birthday Message & Mess Hall Menu

I was the Aide for the period 1963-1964 to MGen Ray Murray during his tour as CG, MCRD, PISC. The recruits celebrated the 188th Birthday in 1963 on Saturday, 9 November. I assume it was because the birthday fell on Sunday.

Have attached a copy of Gen. Murray's birthday message. read more

Future Marine

Dear Sgt. Grit, I am 17 years old and and finishing up high school so I can enlist in the Marine Corps. It's all I have ever wanted to do since I was a kid. I have earned the nicknames "Boot" and "Recruit" from some people who say I will be an outstanding Marine someday. One of my good buddies is a Veteran Marine, he has been the biggest influence in my life and is the reason why I want to enlist. He was an 0311 in the 3rd Marine Division and He served three tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. I plan to serve my Country with Honor, Courage, and Commitment in the future, and the Corps. I want to thank all service members from all branches who have served in the past and who are serving now. "Blessed be the Lord my strength, Which teacheth my hands to War, And my fingers to fight."  Psalms 144:1 read more

A good friend

In 1957 while serving with Kilo Btry, 4th Battalion, 12th Marines on a 155 Howitzer Btry. in the Philippines during Operation Strongback… I was surprised one evening when a small Rhesus monkey wandered into my tent from out of the jungle… For  some reason he took up with me and was always close  to me… He got to making his way around camp picking up anything he could carry back to my tent… I had at times a dozen or so Zippo's… The guys soon realized when they were missing something to come to me, knowing my little buddy had paid them a visit… He slept curled up next to me every night and would wake up screaming mad if anyone got too close to me… I just called him Monkey Buddy and hated to leave him behind when I had to return to Okinawa… Over these 55 years I've thought of him often and considerd him a great little Marine… Semper Fi Monkey Buddy… Howard W. Kennedy… USMC 1956  /  1962 read more

Fainting Vapors

"Pickle grass"?… never heard it called that, even when covered
with doughnut puke… more commonly known as 'ice plant'… low-growing, creeping succulent plant, with triangular 'leaves',
probably related to cactus of some kind… widely used by the California DOT on freeway banks as erosion control, comes in a couple of colors when in bloom, makes sure that the entire bank will 'slide' as one mat, when the soil gets wet enough. Long a favorite of DI's, and Company Gunnys at MCRD and Pendleton. Good for collecting butts and trash, eventually looks pretty mangy (well, not at MCRD, now that there are very few Quonset huts to plant it around). read more

Madison Rising

Sgt Grit, brother and sister Marines,

I'm a deputy sheriff and had the fortunate opportunity to work a
security detail for a patriotic rock group, Madison Rising. The
event coordinator knows I am a Marine and told me the lead singer, Dave Bray, was a corpsman. Dave was meeting with fans and when there was a break in the action I approached him and asked if he was a Doc. He said he was and was stationed at Camp
Lejeune, NC. I asked him what outfit he was in and he said 2/2.
Amazingly enough, I was with Regimental Headquarters at that same time he was with 2/2! Such a small world and even smaller Corps. We exchanged stories about our units and places of deployment. read more

Area 13 Barrack’s Tree

This group of Marines was destined to spend the next two years together in VMA-212, MAG-13, 1st. Marine Brigade at Kaneohe Bay Hawaii. It would be a nine day voyage on the USS George Clymer from San Diego to Pearl Harbor, but first we had to spend a month or so at Area 13, Camp Pendleton, a staging Battalion for over 600 Marines waiting to be shipped out to Pacific duty stations. It was April, 1961, and Area 13 was hilly, hot, and dry. In order to keep all these young Marines busy the Officers and NCOs had us run up and down those brown hills several times a day whenever we weren't field daying the barracks. read more