U.S. Marines and Sailors with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) (26th MEU(SOC)), will be returning home, marking the end of an eight-month deployment serving as the Tri-Geographic Combatant Command crisis response force, Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, Mar. 16-19, 2024.Media are invited to the 26th MEU(SOC)’s homecoming events as the Marines and sailors arrive back at their home bases in Cherry Point, New River, and Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.Saturday, Mar. 16, 2024 – Marines and Sailors assigned to the 26th MEU(SOC)’s Aviation Combat Element will fly-off AV-8B Harriers from the USS BATAAN (LHD 5) to Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point. This marks the last time VMA-231 will deploy AV-8Bs
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The 92-year-old Jacksonville, North Carolina resident laid his head down on his pillow as thoughts roamed through his head, as they had for over 50 years.“How… I went through all that misery and never got hit,” he thought to himself as his eyes gradually started to close.“Well, somebody got to do it,” declared retired U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Ismael Gonzalez-Ramos, a former infantry unit leader and decorated combat veteran. “If you don’t do it, someone is gonna put those kids out and do it for you.”Not many people can say they personally know someone who’s fought in war three times. To say you have been through three whole tours in two different wars is a rare feat. His dedication to his patriotic and selfless values is something only a
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Due to significantly low traffic volume, Camp Lejeune’s Triangle Outpost (TOP) Gate will only be open on weekdays from 5:30 to 8 a.m. and 3:30 to 6 p.m. beginning March 12. The TOP Gate, located along NC-172 near Lyman Road on MCB Camp Lejeune and Bear Creek Road in Hubert, will be closed on weekends and holiday liberty periods.This reduction in hours will also enable the base to reallocate security personnel to support other security and law enforcement requirements.Personnel who typically use the TOP Gate during off-peak hours are advised to use the Piney Green Gate (limited to weekdays only) or Holcomb Gate (open 24/7).Commuters who routinely use NC-172 to bypass NC-24/NC-17 when traveling between Hubert and Sneads Ferry during off-peak
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Sgt Lina Fuerte, a legal services specialist with the Defense Services Organization, Headquarters and Support Battalion, Marine Corps Installations East-Marine Corps Base (MCIEAST-MCB) Camp Lejeune, was recognized as Marine Corps Installation Command’s Noncommissioned Officer of the Year for 2023 and awarded a Navy Marine Corps Achievement Medal (NAM) during a ceremony on MCB Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, Feb. 16, 2024.Fuerte, a Georgia native, joined the Marine Corps on Dec. 6, 2020, because she wanted to be part of something bigger than just herself. Less than four years into her career, Fuerte is doing just that. In addition to this award, she was meritoriously promoted to the rank of sergeant on Feb. 2, 2024.“I think this award gives
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U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Toby Fordham, a Georgia native and automotive maintenance technician with Combat Logistics Battalion (CLB) 24, 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, is recognized as II Marine Expeditionary Force (MEF) Non-Commissioned Officer (NCO) of the Year for 2023.Fordham’s recognition as II MEF NCO of the Year is largely due to his consistent drive for personal and professional development throughout his Marine Corps career. In 2023, he extended past his primary military occupational specialty (MOS) to take courses such as the Force Fitness Instructor (FFI) course and Marine Corps Martial Arts Program (MCMAP) Instructor courses, aiming to enhance both his career and assist his Marines in advancing theirs.“When I found out I won, I
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A proclamation ceremony was held on Monday, Feb. 5, at Clear View Elementary School, in Jacksonville, North Carolina to formally recognize an agreement between the school and Wounded Warrior Battalion-East (WWBn-East).Clear View Elementary has over 200 military-connected students kids enrolled, making the proclamation between WWBn-East and Clear View Elementary School a mutually beneficial relationship. The Adopt-a-School program gives a military unit the ability to support local schools by assisting with field trips, family nights, Month of the Military Child and other special events.“Our schools want to be a part of our installations and get to know our Marines and Sailors, and that’s a big ask for some battalions,” said Shannon Washburn,
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For many, the turning of the new year brings promise of change and new beginnings. This sentiment holds especially true for the Camp Lejeune Fire and Emergency Services (CLFES) family as we welcome a new fire chief for the first time in more than a decade.Alex Rivera, an Air Force veteran, and California native, comes to the CLFES family from the United States Military Academy (USMA), West Point, where he served as the fire chief for the last three years.“Chief Rivera and I were both promoted together to Assistant Fire Chiefs at West Point at the end of 2016. We served together for a few years, and he was then promoted to chief,” said Assistant Chief James Rohner, USMA, West Point and Rivera’s former colleague. “He was the perfect person
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Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict, Christopher Maier recently visited Marine Forces Special Operations Command at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, Jan. 17, 2024.
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A new state-of-the-art fire station opened at Courthouse Bay January 11, marking it as the first of 41 construction projects that comprise the $1.7 billion Hurricane Florence Recovery Program (HFRP).The new firehouse represents a $16.2 million investment that includes six bays and is rated for higher winds to withstand future destructive weather. It also boasts over 15,000 square feet of space, consolidates multiple fire department functions, and includes much-needed training and administrative spaces.The newly built structure replaces the previous fire station, which was old and in disrepair after Hurricane Florence, said Fire Chief Alex Rivera with Marine Corps Installations East-Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune and Marine Corps Air Station
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Today the Justice Department and the Department of the Navy (Navy) issued the following fraud alert to inform individuals filing a claim or lawsuit under the Camp Lejeune Justice Act (CLJA) of 2022 about fraudulent attempts to obtain personal information or monetary payments from potential claimants.Due to growing concerns over reports that unscrupulous people and companies are seeking or sought to obtain personal information from CLJA claimants or otherwise defraud them, the Justice Department and Navy advise claimants and their attorneys to be cautious of potentially fraudulent activity through telephone calls or email solicitations.Claimants who receive calls or emails from individuals attempting to collect money or personal information
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In an effort to decrease wait times for Marines receiving and returning gear, the Consolidated Storage Program at Marine Corps Base (MCB) Camp Lejeune will modernize its appointment system and consolidate its Individual Issue Facility (IIF) with the gear return facility already located in Building 1211 on Birch Street, beginning Jan. 18, 2024.The change was planned with the benefit of the warfighter in mind, said Ana Ayala Spivey, project officer, Consolidated Storage Program, Marine Corps Installations East-MCB Camp Lejeune.“We want to ensure that we’re staying in touch with changing times, with what the Marines expect from us,” said Spivey about the change.“We will convert this current issue facility into a distribution center, where all
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Members of Resident Officer in Charge of Construction Florence Camp Lejeune were able to celebrate the holiday’s a little early with the recent completion of P-1505, the replacement project for two railroad trestles at Queens Creek and White Oak River, as well as the replacement of all railroad ties along the 34 mile line between Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune and Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point.The original trestles received damage during Hurricane Florence in 2018. A restoration assessment and structural analysis recommended replacement due to numerous signs of structural decay.Contractor of record, Archer Western of the Walsh Group, started the project with the construction of temporary trestles to access the entire work area with
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What if the Marine Corps changed its fitness center model from a regular commercial gym and took it to the professional or collegiate Division 1 model of a human performance center? Nick Gounaris, the strength and conditioning director for Semper Fit, Headquarters Marine Corps, is here to tell you the Marine Corps is doing just that.“We're trying to take the Warrior Athlete Readiness and Resilience (WARR) Center concept, so it’s a place where you have human performance professionals, strength and conditioning coaches, massage therapists, doctors, financial advisors, everybody under the sun who is here to support the Marines, and put them in one place,” said Gounaris, “We’re trying to get Marines to come into our facility for physical
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U.S. Navy Cmdr. Charles K. Springle was killed on May 11, 2009 during an attack on the Combat Stress Center at Camp Liberty in Baghdad, Iraq, while serving as a licensed clinical social worker with the Army's 55th Medical Company. Today his legacy lives on through the Commander Charles K. Springle Behavioral Health Complex, rededicated in his honor, at Midway Park on Marine Corps Base (MCB) Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, on Monday, Dec. 4, 2023.At the time of his death, Cmdr. Springle served 21 years in the U.S. Navy as a licensed clinical social worker. During his service, he dedicated his time to helping service members suffering the effects of stress from both military and family-related issues.“He was dedicated to trying to make people
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The new CH-53K maintenance hangar aboard Marine Corps Air Station New River received its final roof beam in a special “Topping Out” ceremony commemorating the construction milestone on October 25, 2023.Contractor of record, Archer Western of The Walsh Group, hosted the event for OICC Florence and Marine Corps representatives to gather and sign the beam before it was lifted into place at the top of the new structure. The tradition of topping out a building goes back hundreds of years, and was a means to either bring luck or ward off evil spirits for the new occupants. The original tradition adapted from placing a branch atop the highest part of the building to securing the final steel beam when steel became the dominate material.Marines,
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