Marine Corps Base Quantico

 

Marine Corps Base Quantico

"Crossroads of the Marine Corps"

Unit News
Local Military Affairs Council visits MCBQ, observes training

By Eve A. Baker | Marine Corps Base Quantico | May 22, 2015

MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va. -- On May 12, members of the Fredericksburg Military Affairs Council met with Base Commander Col. David Maxwell and instructors from The Basic School aboard Marine Corps Base Quantico to gain a better understanding of the training that occurs here.

The council is made up of local government representatives, business professionals and other interested citizens who "advocate for and promote the military and national defense bases, commands and installations in the region," according to a statement on their website.

Kasey Nabal, manager of the MAC, said there are four military installations that fall within the area of concern for the council, MCBQ being one of them, and that she arranges two installation tours per year. Nabal said the purpose of the tours is to give the MAC members, local chambers of commerce and members of the public the opportunity to see what service members do and give them a better understanding of how the military bases are integral parts of the community.

According to data provided by the MCBQ Business Performance Office, in 2013 the base contributed $5.8 billion to the local economy, which includes Prince William, Fauquier, Fairfax, Stafford and Spotsylvania counties, as well as the independent cities of Fairfax, Falls Church, Manassas, Manassas Park and Fredericksburg. This contribution happens through employee salaries — MCBQ provides 23,398 direct jobs — contracts awarded, visitor and employee spending in the local communities, participation in the housing market, and state and regional tax assessments, among other means.

After meeting at the National Museum of the Marine Corps, the group traveled to the MOUT facility to observe a training evolution.

Maj. Brian Wilson, the Maneuver Section head and an instructor at TBS, gave an overview of the training process for warrant officers and second lieutenants and answered questions from the attendees.

Mark Speirs, of the University of Mary Washington Center for Economic Development, said he was here to see what goes on aboard the base and that he did not realize the base was as large as it is (approximately 55,000 acres or 86 square miles).

Wilson led the group through the MOUT town and described the intensity of the training, as participants viewed a warrant officer class patrolling through the area and responding to attacks by role players. At one point participants climbed three flights of stairs in near-total darkness to view the training from a rooftop.

Meg Bohmke, the Falmouth district representative on the Stafford County Board of Supervisors, said that "Quantico is a great source of economic support to the community," and she wanted to participate in the tour to see the base and its contributions on a deeper level.

— Writer: ebaker@quanticosentryonline.com