Richard L Sanders

Former Marine, retired from Navy

San Angelo Texas

I enlisted in USMC at age 17 2/5/52, when I left USMC to enter USAF I was at MCB 8th & I as a SSGT (E5) assigned to CMC gardener section at CMC quarters I also took care of the parade grounds Gen Shoup was CMC my MOS was 1371 Combat Engineer, Proir to the CMC asssigmnent I served at Pax River Md, USS Mpont Olympus AGC 8, as Admiral’s Orderly ComPhibGrp 2 (Rar Admiral H.P. Smith later Rear Admiral W.F Peterson,we transfered Flag to USS Taconic AGC 17, then to USS Fremont APA 44, From the Fremont I went to I Co.3rd Bn 6th Marines, complete MOS transition to 1371 at Courthouse bay reassigned to H&S co 2nd Shore Party BN, As a Sgt(E4) was Acting Company GySgt When 1stSgt Joe Winter was assigned to USS Lake Champlain CVS 39, He had me assigned there as Detachment GySgt
I served there as well with 1stSgt Gil Booser( I was promoted to SSgt(E-5) upon arrival to the Champ
I was relieved on Champ by SSgt(E6) John Womble then joined 2nd Bridge Company an Camp Geiger, We were active in the Cuban Blocked, we deployed to GitMo,I was a Plt Sgt of a floating Bridge Platoon
From Camp Geiger I went to MCB 8th & I During my tour inUSMC I served with some outstanding people.
From USMC I went into USAF served 4 years, then enlisted in USAF from USAF enterd USN Seabees
served 3 deployments to Vietnam
as Petty Officer in charge of Battalion Security Company
Retire from Navy 3 December 1972

I have long ed that the Marine Corps should be elevated to equal status with Navy (If Fact some years a go I wrote letters adicating USMC should be designated by congress as a seperate armed force branch just as was USAF when seperate from USA
I am now 75 years old fighting cancer & various other medical problems but I can say with out doubt I would never have made it this far had I not had the training I got from Marine Corps