Ian Keith Tyson Essay

“It was the best, worst thing to happen to me.” claims Ian Keith Tyson of his military career. Mr. Tyson is a veteran Marine who served in both Operation Iraqi Freedom (later renamed Operation New Dawn) and the war in Afghanistan from the years 2009-2011. Born in Boston, Massachusetts on July 31st,1985, he eventually enlisted in the Marine Corps at the age of 24. After interviewing with each individual branch, he decided that the Marines simply fit. This was a decision that would permanently alter his life, for the better. The United States Marine Corps are a branch of the United States Armed Forces, accountable for providing rapid power projection. Training is an essential aspect of becoming a Marine and being able to do this, so, Ian Tyson arrived at bootcamp, where there was utter chaos and confusion. No one knew what was happening or why, the drill sergeants looked like monsters, and every individual became nothing but a number, a part of the crowd.

1st Battalion 10th Marines is an artillery battalion stationed at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina with a mission to provide artillery support for the 2nd Marine Division in times of combat. The U.S. 2nd Marine Division is the ground combat element of the Marine Expeditionary Force, a Marine Air-Ground Task Force. During Operation Iraqi Freedom (New Dawn), Mr. Tyson mainly stood post on base as a combat reserve, and then during his time in the Afghanistan war, he spent most of his time working on anything electrical. The skills he learned here eventually became applicable to his life after the military, however an item of utmost importance that he carried with him afterwards were the bonds he formed, many of which were developed in the many long hours stuck in shop. Mr. Tyson remarked that “Marines are not about friends. Marines are about family.”, displaying the value of these bonds to him, the bonds that were formed during this time in his