Semper Fi

November 10 is the Marine Corps Birthday.

I’ve written here before about my favorite Marine, but I don’t hesitate to do so again. I knew him years ago, in Juneau, and he even rented the apartment below my own for a while. Some people are iconic in our memories, and Carolina Lee is outstanding in mine. A credit to the Corps.

He was a big, bullet-headed old gunny M/S with a wide white scar through one eyebrow nobody ever got him to talk about. If we ever forgot his favorite holiday, he always reminded us. He’d arrive at the Red Dog, his steel helmet liner firmly in place, and order his first beer, which always arrived in quart bottles, especially for him.

He was always and invariably polite, mild-mannered, and soft-spoken, no matter how many empty quart bottles stood in front of him. I never saw him lose his temper or become argumentative. Women were always “Ma’am,” and the men were “Sir,” and he never forgot.

He always loved and honored the Corps, and he inspired me to respect and admire all the men and women who wore the Marine Corps Globe.

My hat’s off to you today, Gunnery Master Sergeant Leon J. Choceij, and, thanks to your example, I hereby send my best and most heartfelt birthday wishes to the patriots in the United States Marines. May God bless and protect you, wherever you are.

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