Home for the Holidays: Local Marine Returns from Boot Camp

By Kelly Streaser, The Glen Echo

At the end of each school year, onlookers watch as the graduating seniors prepare to go on to "bigger and better" things, a phrase which often equates to going to a college in the fall. But a traditional college was not the case for Dan Vest, class of 2013.

On Sept. 9, 2013, Vest left his home for Parris Island, SC, and reported for boot camp. He made the decision to become a United States Marine during his senior year at Glen Rock High School.

“I joined the Marine Corps because of the lifestyle and the mentality,” he explained. “The Corps’ values of honor, courage and commitment stress selflessness, integrity and dedication to the greater good. The marines are… the best the country has to offer, and I wanted to be part of that culture and that way of life.”

And so for approximately three months, Vest went through rigorous training at boot camp. This regime included waking up at 4 a.m. every morning, learning the history of the Marine Corps and their values, physical training, studying weapons and developing rifle skills, and hours of drill practice – all under the watch of the drill instructors.

It all leads up to ‘the Crucible,’ a final test of teamwork, physical strength, and mental endurance that lasts for 54 hours at the end of boot camp.

For Dan, ‘the Crucible’ contained the best and worst parts of boot camp. The test was grueling. 

“I spent the first day out in below freezing temp with nothing but cargo pants, a cami-blouse, boots, a hat and gloves,” Vest recalled. “The second day, when we all thought it couldn’t get worse, it started to rain. The rain didn't let up until the next morning when we were halfway through our 12k hike back to the squad bay.”

But, according Vest, it was all worth it in the end. “When we got back to the squad bay was the best moment of my life, and a feeling I’ll never forget so long as I live. That's the moment you know that you've completed the first step of a long, difficult experience, and you’ve earned the right to call yourself a United States Marine.”

On Dec. 6, Vest graduated from boot camp, completing the first phase of his training. Then, on the 8th, he returned home for the first time in three months.

Yet Vest must prepare to depart again shortly, as he will leave on Dec. 16 for Marine Combat Training. Fortunately, he will have four days of leave so he can spend Christmas with his family.

Looking towards the future, Vest plans to finish his five year enlistment and then go to college for health and physical education to eventually become a physical education teacher.