Calling all Marines!

If he is going to boot camp, he will not be allowed to carry anything other than the clothes on his back and his wallet. If you want to give him something to take with him, send him off with good memories of home and send him lots of letters. The high-speed gear you are referring to might be useful in a deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan, but not in boot camp. I hope this answers your question.


** Personal firearms are no longer allowed in most places in the AOR (Iraq/Afghanistan).

V/R,
Cpl Blythe, USMC
1st Intel Bn
Al Asad, Iraq

Just an idea but I read an article recently about a soldier who carried an American flag throughout his deployment. I wonder if you could get a local office/official to donate one for him.

Do not take to basic. When he gets deployed A Black Hawk retention holster is best. The Marines sometimes issue this but an extra holster and a chest rig (not issued) is very nice to have.

I myself am not a Marine, but Family members are.

Basic Training will disallow the Boot anything and everything.

Once that Boot graduates and becomes a Marine, you most certainly will probably be able to present whatever you want to as a gift. But think you would want to present a Pistol or firearm somewhere later after the Ceremonies OFF base.

But it would not hurt to find out if you can do something for the Boot while he or she goes through training. But think that a holster or anything NOT specifically issued to the Boot will probably be disallowed.

Imagine this.

A Marine is not I, Me or My; Mine. One Marine in a Platoon wearing a non regulation Holster (Gift or whatever) in a sea of Marines stands out really badly in basic as a non-conforming individual.

That is the way I see it.

When I was in the desert, a local church gave our squadron a gift box of small, folded flags. Alot of us carried them in a pocket with us. Perhaps a nice photo taken at the cookout with everyone there, a flag, and a crucifix.

Of course, every Marine wants to carry a good field knife. Perhaps a nice Ka-Bar field knife as well, or if there might be a custom knife maker in your local area that could make him a nice field knife. I was given a nice, locally made knife, and I cherished it greatly.

Yea, Wait till after Boot Camp. One thing He will be able to Have is a Saint Christopher (or simmilar) Necklace. If you give him a Firearm he will have to Leave it at Home until he Get a Duty station, then it may have to Stay in the armory while he is on base. They Prolly wouldnt Let him Use it While over sees anyway.

And don't send him any goodies like cookies. We have a family friend who sent my son a package of chocolate energy bars while he was at MCRD in San Diego. He had to eat them all in less than two minutes. He ended up barfing. His recruiter should tell you the do's and don'ts for recruits in Marine Corps Basic.

A steel plated Bible, pocket sized. I've heard of these actually saving lives, not sure if it is true or just good stories and I know they save souls.

For Boot Camp dont send him anything except for letters of encouragment, after a few weeks he'll write to you and you can send him maybe some cough drops, or if he has some motivated Senior Drill Instructor that wants to take the Final PFT you might be able to send him Power Bars and Powdered Gatorade, that the Senior will have boxed up into a foot locker and saved until the weeks before the final PFT. But ask him first in a letter what his Senior will allow them to recieve at mail time. Once he gets to his perminent duty station he can then have a firearm, however it must be locked and logged into the armory if he lives on base. Also dont forget if you do buy him a firearm, make sure your not buying him something that isnt allowed in the state he may be stationed in, he could also be stationed overseas where he wont be able to have any personal firearms. The best holster I had and everyone in my squad eventually bought, was the Safariland 6005 holster. This can be bought now in the coyote tan finish to match his uniform and is a great drop leg with many extra features the 6004 didnt have. His sidearm issued to him is going to be a Beretta M9 unless he goes Reconnaissance and is in an operational platoon then it will be the Meu(Soc) 1911. I have to agree a picture with you all in it, will bring him back to that special memory and time, when hes going through tough times, a crucibal to keep close to his heart will give him the courage to push on when his body wants to give up. And a flag will remind him what hes fighting for. Sorry for the story.
Semper Fi
Cpl. R. Kirkbride USMC

I think my multi tool was one of the most useful items I had in the Army. Off to Boot camp , the BEST running shoes you can afford and insoles for combat boots are a must.

Sending " care packages" is usually frowned upon

To retouch on something mentioned above, the best thing you can send is mail. Postcard will suffice, letter can be better. Words of encouragement work, reminders of the "why" of the present suffering especially good--"You stand guard that others might sit safe; you must be alert that so that others may sleep; you sometimes suffer, but that is to prevent the ones safe at home from suffering" and the like.

In Iraq my buddy got a DVD from his church of a service where he was mentioned along with all the others in the service. I thought that was nice. He would play it all the time and sing the hymns. Drove me nuts, (he sang like $&$@)but I kept my silence because a bit of home over there was priceless.

The politics involved in holsters when active duty blow my mind. A friend of mine just got back from Afghanistan and he was telling me how when he showed up for the start of his 7 month "vacation" he wore the holster he trained/worked with in basic. Then a month in the order came down to switch to a different type of holster. His superiors were asking him why he was using the holster he was, because he wasn't trained with it. After he informed them he was, they still had him switch to the newer type after showing he can draw a pistol out of it properly. Then 3 months later the message came down to switch everyone back to the other holster, which required more training. Luckily he still had his original holster.

With someone going to basic it would be best to not send them with anything. Give them something when they get back. I wouldn't send anything gear related when they serve active duty either, because what you can use can change in a instant.

The official word is that Marines can only carry TOE weapons in-theater. While some of them do carry and use pickup weapons, and some have carried personal M92s. The tag line is "God help you, don't shoot anyone with it".

If he has a personal weapon at his duty station, he will have to check it into the armory and check it out to use it. They normally have you declare personal weapons even if you live off base.

After doing a handgun class for the local Reserve/Recruiting staff, one of them rotated to Mainland Japan. He was not even allowed an airsoft gun to practice with, let alone a real one, so I sent a Rings blue gun M92 with him.

Dan

Rockwell nailed it. The BEST running shoes you can get him.

Semper Fi
USMC 89-92

Just like others have said nothing on his way to boot camp. He won't be able to have anything except what is issued to him. After boot camp a good multi tool or pocket knife would be great idea. They issue the same "go fasters" (running shoes) to everyone and he won't be allowed to wear anything different.

DVD's, music tapes, letters.. did I say letters. Maybe the Man has a girlfriend, SHE can write some.. GOOD letters.... that will boost him very well. Anything that does not have to be consumed in large quanities or could be considered contrabrand while in Boot.

It will be most important because once he goes in, they are going to strip off his old Civilian life and start off with nothing and build a Marine. All he has to do is be strong, dig down for that special something and obey orders instantly without question.

Finally but not last, if that Pugil Pit whistles him to a stop fighting because he wins, he might just have a chance to become a Guide for the Platoon simply by obeying instructor in heat of violence.

He goes in lost lamb, but will come out bound for Heaven's Scenes. Someday he will look back on this experience as a birth. And it will be very wonderful. But there is hell to pay to do it =)

My son's a year in now - others covered it well - basically nothing at Boot unless he tells you to send it. You can not send too many letters of encouragment.
One thing at Boot he loved (when he told me to send pics) - laminated pocket sized photos - I added a motivational quote to the bottom of each pic and laminated them back to back. He carried them everywhere.

God bless your new young Marine to be - and all those who have served / serving.

I wasn't a Marine, I was a soldier, but I think it translates. I agree with the other folks here: don't send anything with him to boot camp but send him plenty of letters while he's there.

When he gets home, give him a USMC KA-BAR engraved with the date he graduates from boot camp. That's the day he stops being a recruit and starts being a Marine. He'll never forget that day.

Another Non-Marine

I too was not a Marine, but I did serve with the 18th Airborne Corps and have a few observations.

At least during Boot Camp, TOE Equipment only! For you non-military types, that is only what the USMC issues him. Absolutly nothing else, not even running shoes. The USMC will issue or his entire unit will purchase the same running shoe for every man in the unit. Please save your friend the grief and extra PT "special gear" with bring down on him.

After and I stress after he has completed Boot Camp and is assigned to a manuver unit, then get him a high qualtiy folding knife or multi-tool. If you get it as he reports for Boot Camp, it will be confiscated. He may or may not get it back. Truth be known, he probably won't.

Schutzen, Just another GRUNT

One other thing. That Marine is probably going to go into battle. It's what Marines live to do when they finish thier training.

Please for the love of mike, DONT allow anyone in that Marine's family to get all emotional and weepy thinking that they have to go make funeral plans when they do ship out. Leave that stuff away. Clear out the hearts, tears and weepies in private and then tell that Marine that you love him/her and will have the porch light on when he or she gets back.

God bless the USMC. The Army and Navy does do thier share but when it's all passed over it's the Marines who pull firewatch over yonder.

i would wait until after basic and give him an engraved ka-bar

say something like "to the son of our town, we we always be with you" or just something sentimental

a friend of mine thats like a brother to me deployed yesterday to iraq and the last thing i gave him was a carton of cigerettes (his brand ) that i got all of our friends to sign and write some crude words on for him he laughed and it actually braught a tear to his eye when we covered an entire carton with names and cuss words write in the center we wrote "stay safe &$%hole"
it sounds like its in bad taste but its how we all are to eachother mean and smart allics but he knows all the prfanity came right from the heart lol

They issue the same "go fasters" (running shoes) to everyone and he won't be allowed to wear anything different

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When did that change?

I still say the Combat boot insoles are a good investment against shin splints and i can't imagine a Drill saying he can't use those