Preserving The Oral HistorIES of Combat Veterans
23:20 | It takes a lot of heart to become a Marine but it takes even more to become a Reconnaissance Marine. To endure the rigorous physical and mental challenges means you are one of the elite. This group of Recon Marines shares their personal stories of joining the Corps and how they came to Recon during a pivotal time in history. Part 1 of 3. (Caution: strong language)
He came from the pristine Montana wilderness. George Howard loved that part but he wanted to leave and do something else. He went to see a recruiter and the Marine dress blues snagged another one.
George Howard wasn't a Recon Marine but he was serving with them in the motor pool. He made sure to outperform them at PT so they knew he had what it takes. After 9/11 everyone in the unit was anxious to do something about it but it took a long time before most of them got their chance in Iraq.
George Howard gives a shout out to his buddies in the 1st Recon motor pool. If they had not deployed to Iraq, he would have continued on to become a Recon Marine himself but war has a way of changing plans. He had volunteered for motorcycle school so when he hit Kuwait it was on a Kawasaki. (Caution: strong language)
The first few days were uneventful but, of course, that didn't last. George Howard was pushing into Iraq with the 1st Recon Marines and when they got to Nasiriyah the war was inescapable. He began to question how long his time as a Marine was going to be.
He was in charge of the motorcycles. George Howard made some makeshift ramps to get them onto trailers and the Recon Marines used them to get across holes on the damaged Iraqi bridges. He felt a little pride for making a difference but he had a real mystery going on. His enlistment period was about at an end. Were they going to let him go home?
He was stuck as a valet after leaving the Marines but a chance meeting put George Howard on an upward path at a mortgage brokerage firm. The market crashed in 2008 so he returned to Iraq as a contractor but then, ironically, the financial crisis afforded him a new job possibility.
As Operation Iraqi Freedom unfolded, the mission of the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion was to draw out Saddam's forces and engage them while larger bodies of troops moved on Baghdad. With one Recon platoon, a journalist was embedded who turned their story into a series of articles, a book and an award winning Hollywood production named Generation Kill. Part 2 of 3. (Caution: strong language)
They thought it was over. In 2003 the men of the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion stormed into Iraq during the initial assault. They returned home triumphant, mission accomplished. But then the word came that there would be an emergency redeployment. Saddam may be gone but the job was not finished and they were going to Fallujah. Part 3 of 3. (Caution: strong language)
