Sarah talks about her 'Chuy',Alejandro Cook
Cowboy's Mom Talks about Kirk Nelson!
The "Grand Old Man',Helen & Abigail Sandoval
Cpl Aaron Arnold Falls For Joyce!
Aunt Linda Talks About Jen Harris
Tammy Loves Ryan Valdez
Angela Talks about Benjamin Angela and Leon Talk about Suggs
Karen & Sgt Swearingen
John Burrows Mom Speaks Up!
Veda, Kit and Chip the Lizardman
James Shores Proposes
Amy's Adventure with Capt Demik
Katy, Cassidy and Dad!
Sara & Shawn's Crash Meeting!

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24 hours after the birth of our daughter my husband came into the hospital room informing me that he had just received orders to Vietnam. I immediately went into a state of panic that only increased when doctors refused to let me leave the hospital for 3 days. Confronted with the crisis of war, what would you say to a woman whose hormones are all out of sync? Not much, I think. Certainly, the doctors at Camp LeJeune, N.C. knew better than to pander the usual lines of reassurance. "Don't worry, little lady", was just not going to fly with me! I suspect, at that moment that they thought I was more dangerous than some faceless enemy 3000 miles away and were probably right. I, like many other women of the time had to adjust to the orders of the USMC, even if they appeared to be poorly timed. Okay, it was war, I understood that, I was a Marine wife, I understood that, but at the time my feelings and thoughts were not exactly communicating together!

So what memories do I have of that period? Surprisingly, my husband's Marine buddies stand out as the most cherished. After discovering our situation several men in his unit requested to take his place in deployment so we could have time settle our family before he left. The request understandably was denied, but the selflessness of these men still remains in my heart. All the hype of the rough and tumble, emotionless highly trained warrior, is just that, hype. These men remain in my heart and mind as my protectors.

Kerry was stationed with HMM-364, Purple Foxes at DaNang from 1969-1970.

Vicki Wages

For a little something about Jen and me...............Jen is the daughter I never had! I have three sons, the oldest of whom is an Army (ouch!) Kiowa helicopter pilot. Jen's mom has Multiple Sclerosis and it is very difficult for her to get around.............so I happily was able to share more in Jen's life than the typical aunt. I had the fun of shopping for prom dresses, USNA Ring Dance, visiting the Naval Academy with my video camera always in tow so the whole family could share the experiences "on TV". Thanks to the wonderful world of the internet, I have been able to share everything that Jen has done with her family. We have a scapbook of pictures and articles, all of her e-mails and even the audio interview with Greg Jarrett on a cd to give to her when she returns.

Jen has always been an extremely hard worker. She puts 100% into everything she does. She is also very compassionate. She really cares about people and I am sure that the Purple Foxes are benefiting from that quality. She is a good listener and I am sure that she has probably filled the void felt by some of her Marines, leaving their Moms or sisters or best friends to go off to war. I am sooooooooooo proud of her..........and all of our men and women in the military!

Foxy Lady Linda Macone Proud Aunt!

It was in December of '95 at the ARMY-NAVY Football game in Philadelphia that we met. We started dating his last year and he graduated with a degree in Computer Sciences and a Minor in Japanese in '97. It was these final years at the Academy and his experiences on summer cruise with Marines both at Quantico and Mirimar that convinced this NAVY BRAT to run for the CORPS! One chance at painting his face and playing war games and he was done...no looking back...it was MARINE CORPS ALL THE WAY. Well, needless to say, it was a difficult phone call back to Mom and Dad, but he was then selected for MARINE AIR, shaved and after Commissioning, sent to the Pentagon for 2 months before TBS.

I was thrilled that my handsome husband wasn't wearing those MILKMAN Navy uniforms anymore! We were married at the Naval Academy Chapel on July 12, 1997 and moved to Woodbridge, VA to begin our journey. He went through Basic, then started API and then on to Whiting Field. In between the studying and flight school schedule, we had some time to have our first born, our son, Ryan "Austin" DeMik. At this time, Ryan started to lean more and more to the 46 community as his first choice. He wanted to be a Marine because he was so impressed by the NOT FOR ONESELF attitude that he saw present in every Marine. Working on 46's seemed like a great fit to be involved with Grunts as well as that team work feeling you get from working with a 4 man crew. So, graduating at the top of his class in Feb, 2000 he chose 46's Okinawa (the selection that most people dread!) He went through the RAG out here at Pendleton with HMM-165, then we were off to THE ROCK!

Our time on Oki with HMM-262 was an adventure. It was a fantastic group of people....you know, when you make that one batch of chili that has just the right seasonings, you can never replicate it no matter how hard you try! He was involved with many exercises in the Thailand, S. Korea, Hong Kong, Mainland Japan and almost in the Philippines.. his bird had hydraulic failure and had to make an emergency landing on one of the islands on the path to the PI and stayed over for a few days before they could return to FUTENMA. So, after making it through a MEU with the ESSEX Battle Group we settled in but due to health issues with our daughter, Ellie, who was born on island, we needed to return to the States for health care. It was a blessing that he was picked up by HMM-364 and we moved to Camp Pendleton in January of 2002.

So, what can I say about my husband? That after 6 years of marriage, 2 kids, 9 moves, and countless MEU exercises, TADs, CAXs, schools, duties, "I won't be home for dinner again" days, I can honestly say he is still the kindest, most decent man I have ever known. I miss him terribly but know that he is doing his job, what he has trained to do, what he joined the Marine Corps to do, and I'm sure he's doing it as thoroughly as he can and with a joke and a smile.

Semper Fi, let's hope things rap up soon for our beloved Purple Foxes.
Amy DeMik

We met on Sept 19, 2001 at the beach in oceanside. I don't know about him, but it was love at first sight for me. That first night I told my friend I was going to marry him. We sat up & talked all night until he had to get ready to go to work. We were married by the Justice of the Peace on Dec. 17,
2002. We are going to have a big wedding with friends & family in attendance on Sept. 28th 2003.
Come home soon!

Katy and Cassity

Shawn and I dated for 9 months before he enlisted and went to boot camp. Being a Marine brat, I was well aware of the "dangers" of being a Marine wife. Shawn grew up in the Air Force, so the Marine life was a bit of a shock. I stayed in Louisiana while he went through MCRD San Diego. His graduation was my first trip to California. It was the most awesome site to see all the recruits becoming Marines. After MCT, Shawn went to Pensacola, my hometown, for mech school and then to New River for more Air Frames and Hydraulics training. It was neat having him stationed on or near the bases where I grew up. In spring of 2000, he was finally stationed at Camp Pendleton with HMM-364 and 2 months later I was transferred to Dallas with JCPenney. We have earned lots of frequent flyer miles between Dallas and San Diego. After a year of traveling and with 2 years left on his tour, we decided it was time to get married. We figured it would make the time left more interesting.

My friends keep telling me I’m insane because I still live in Dallas/Frisco. We have a house, 2 horses and 2 dogs. The horses don’t live with me. Shawn just made Sargeant while in Kuwait, and I had thought I would be there when he received this promotion (I had missed the others) but we will have to celebrate when he returns. He enjoys working in the Corrosion Control shop and I am really proud of the work he does. His EAS is April 27, 2004. Living together will be a challenge, but after this, anything is possible and I am eagerly awaiting the challenge. I am so proud of him for making this commitment to his country and to the United States Marine Corps, it makes me love him even more.
Semper Fi!
Sara

Richard has two older sisters, who both live in Texas. Rick was born in Kansas, but in 1983, we moved to New Braunfels, Texas when he was in Kindergarten and we lived there for about 10 years. In 1992, his freshman year in high school, we moved to Flanders, New Jersey, where he attended Mount Olive High School, graduating in 1996.
He attended Texas A&M University for 2 years, and then lived in Texas for another 8 months, where he enlisted in the U. S. Marine Corps, entering basic training in February, 1999. He had expressed an interest in the military since about the 6th grade, but it was always the Navy and jets, so when he joined the Marines, it was a little bit of a surprise. He still had his interest in flying, but his aircraft ended up being the CH 46 helicopter as an Air Crew Chief.

Original stationed on the East Coast, personal interests had him pursue a transfer to California, which had him assigned to Camp Pendleton in early 2001, where he became part of the Purple Fox Unit.

He was promoted to Sargent this February, two days before being deployed.

Rick became an uncle on March 26, when his older sister, Jennifer, gave birth to her son, Ronald Charles Skelton, III. R.C., as he is called, is anxiously awaiting the opportunity to meet his Uncle Rick.

Rick has lots of love and support from family and friends in various parts of the U.S. -
one of the classes in Cedar Creek Elementary School, Credar Creek, Texas, where his other sister, Allison teaches Pre-k, has sent him letters .
*Allison's Pre-K class made a banner that had each of the students hand prints and thanking Rick for fighting for freedom.
*Also a home school in New Jersey, has also "adopted" Rick and they all sent letters.
*My dance club, Studio West, in NJ also took up a collection, and sent a box of goodies to him and two soldiers in the U.S. Army that are also deployed.
*Plus he has many who are constantly including him and all our service personnel in their prayers

One of the most supportive things he did for me was to be my friend and coach during my first figure competition. I was very moody because of my diet. I had to keep a written diary of every food I ate He helped me to be strong and told me I would do fine. One day, I was reviewing my notes and found little words written beside my entries. "One shot of tequila, One beer." I knew where they had come from...Pete! Surprisingly I won my division and he arrived back stage with sushi, my favorite! What a wonderful guy!

Probably, the most courageous thing that Pete has done so far has been to help me finish my college degree. I look forward with much anticipation to his return and to the continuation of our journey together. Knowing Pete it will begin again in some sort of expensive sports car (Silver, I think)! So when you see Pete and he is quiet, just know this; he may be quiet on the outside, but add tequila and he is most certainly not!

Love,

Sandy Gibbons
Proud Wife!