Heritage Foundation gets up-close-and-personal tour of PI

9 Apr 2004 | Lance Cpl. Darhonda V. Hall Marine Corps Training and Education Command

For most of the 56 members of the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation, the visit to Parris Island April 1 was their first visit to the Depot.

Some members of the foundation are retired Marine Corps officers, who have been retired for more than 30 years, and received training through the Officer Candidate School at Marine Corp Base Quantico, Va.

Most of them had never touched a single blade of grass or even experienced a single sand flea bite on Parris Island.

In typical Parris Island fashion, the Heritage Foundation members received a stern introduction to the Receiving drill instructors as they exited the bus, stood on the yellow footprints and were put through the initial paces of what every recruit experiences.

Some experienced this for the first time, and for others, it was a repeat experience.
B.J. Robison, a founder of the MCHF and retired captain from Maples, Fla., has been
out of the Marine Corps for 43 years. His Marine CorpsĀ  experience came at a time when the world was at war.

"I have never been on Parris Island," said Robison. "I could tell you about Japan, Korea and a lot more places but nothing about Parris Island."

"I never went through recruit training," Robison said. "I went directly to Officer Candidate School. It's great to have this chance to experience this. I love the Marine Corps."

Robison said he is now familiar with the words, "Get off my bus."

Actual receiving drill instructors re-enacted the recruit receiving drop off scene of the MCHF members to Parris Island.

Staff Sgt. Vaughn Williams stood on the bus and gave the 'welcome to my island' speech and rushed them off the bus afterward.

Staff Sgt. Matthew Carmon stood by the bus and yelled commands to the members to 'get on his footprints,' while Staff Sgt. Matthew Miller gave the group the same brief on the Uniform Code of Military Justice new recruits receive while standing on the yellow footprints.

After getting familiar with the Receiving crew, the members of the MCHF took a lunch break at Traditions, and went on a tour of the base.
The members, escorted by Williams, went to the Parris Island Museum and then to the Marine Corps Exchange. Their final stop was the Indoor Simulated Marksmanship Trainer, where they were allowed to shoot simulated M-16A2 service rifles.

"They love the feeling of beginning to be a Marine," Williams said, speaking of other Foundation members. "They normally see this on television."

Members of the MCHF contribute donations to the building of the National Museum of the Marine Corps, to be located next to Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va.

The foundation was established in 1979 and is a private, non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation and promotion of Marine Corps history and tradition. The members of the foundation support the historical programs of the Marine Corps in ways that are not available through government funds.

The foundation helps provide grants for students, financing to assist pay the cost of commemorative history books and acquire works of art for display in the Marine Corps Museum.

For more information, visit the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation Web site at www.usmcmuseum.org.

Marine Corps Training and Education Command