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Transitioning from air conditioning to heat aboard base now underway

Despite record high temperatures in October, sunset is earlier, birds have begun to migrate and cooler weather is here. Before winter takes hold of Virginia, Quantico Public Works has a plan to prepare buildings aboard Marine Corps Base Quantico for the cold winter months.

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Daniel Ferris and his wife Chikako, are thrilled with the ball gown she found at the ExtravaGOWNza event, where there are donated dresses that spouses get to pick out and take home free. - Daniel Ferris and his wife Chikako, are thrilled with the ball gown she found at the ExtravaGOWNza event, where there are donated dresses that spouses get to pick out and take home free.

Volunteers help spouses find a free, special gown for the birthday ball

Marine Corps spouses gathered at the Religious and Family Services Center Saturday morning and waited for their turn to become their own Cinderella.

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Lt. Col. William Pacatte, commanding officer of Marine Corps Air Facility Quantico (MCAF), and Dale Synnes, Naval Facilities Engineering Command, examine the plans for the installation of buoys marking restricted waters offshore of MCAF on Oct. 5. - Lt. Col. William Pacatte, commanding officer of Marine Corps Air Facility Quantico (MCAF), and Dale Synnes, Naval Facilities Engineering Command, examine the plans for the installation of buoys marking restricted waters offshore of MCAF on Oct. 5.

MCAF tightens security on the Potomac with buoys marking restricted areas

In 2010, Marine Corps Air Facility (MCAF) Quantico contracted for the installation of 36 buoys 500 meters out from the facility in the Potomac River, designating those waters as restricted. The intrusion of a fishing boat in January of that year into waters adjacent to MCAF—which houses HMX-1, the helicopter squadron responsible for helicopter transport support to the U.S. president, vice president, Cabinet members, and other VIPs—opened more eyes to the facility’s vulnerability to threat from the river.

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ATTENTION: ROAD CONSTRUCTION - ATTENTION: ROAD CONSTRUCTION

Weekend Road Construction

ATTENTION: ROAD CONSTRUCTION On 22 and 23 October, a contractor will repave portions of Russell Road bridge and the on and off ramps on both sides of Route 1. Russell Road will have a single lane open with flaggers directing traffic. The ramps will be closed entirely. Please follow the traffic and detour signs placed throughout the worksite

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Maj. Gen. Frederick Padilla, president of the National Defense University at Fort McNair, Washington, D.C., gives a keynote address during the National Hispanic Heritage Month Luncheon hosted by Marine Corps Systems Command Oct. 13, at The Clubs at Quantico. Padilla, whose father was an officer in the U.S. Air Force and whose grandfather served in the Army during World War I, shared the story of how his grandparents came to live in America. “My story is not unique,” Padilla said. “It’s an American story. We all have an American story.” Padilla also talked about Marine Staff Sgt. Riayan Tejeda, who was killed in combat in Iraq in 2003, and posthumously granted U.S. citizenship. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Monique Randolph) - Maj. Gen. Frederick Padilla, president of the National Defense University at Fort McNair, Washington, D.C., gives a keynote address during the National Hispanic Heritage Month Luncheon hosted by Marine Corps Systems Command Oct. 13, at The Clubs at Quantico. Padilla, whose father was an officer in the U.S. Air Force and whose grandfather served in the Army during World War I, shared the story of how his grandparents came to live in America. “My story is not unique,” Padilla said. “It’s an American story. We all have an American story.” Padilla also talked about Marine Staff Sgt. Riayan Tejeda, who was killed in combat in Iraq in 2003, and posthumously granted U.S. citizenship. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Monique Randolph)

Quantico celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month

Marine Corps Systems Command hosted a Hispanic Heritage Month luncheon and celebration at The Clubs at Quantico Oct. 13 in honor of the month-long observance which is held annually from Sept. 15 through Oct. 15.

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Gunnery Sgt. Matthew Hafner, a sergeant instructor at Officer Candidates School, gives attendees of the Sept. 21 Marine Corps Acculturation Program a taste of what Marine recruits and officer candidates experience during boot camp and officer training. Photo by Heather Hagan, public affairs officer for HQMC Marine & Family Programs. - Gunnery Sgt. Matthew Hafner, a sergeant instructor at Officer Candidates School, gives attendees of the Sept. 21 Marine Corps Acculturation Program a taste of what Marine recruits and officer candidates experience during boot camp and officer training. Photo by Heather Hagan, public affairs officer for HQMC Marine & Family Programs.

Civilian Marines Learn the Ins and Outs of the Serving the Corps

The two-day MCAP, which was introduced in December of 2007, is meant to educate civilian employees on the history, culture, and organizational structure of the Marine Corps. The hope is that attending the course will leave civilians feeling part of the team and understanding what it means to work for the Corps.

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Larry Friese and Anthony Zinni, alumni of the Basic School Class 1-66, which gathered aboard Marine Corps Base Quantico Oct. 3 and 4 for its first-ever reunion 51 years after graduating, pose together in the Leatherneck Gallery at the National Museum of the Marine Corps. Friese spent 5 years and one month as a prisoner of war in the Hanoi Hilton in Vietnam and later became an oceanographer for the Navy. Zinni is a retired Marine Corps general who served as commander in chief of United States Central Command from 1996 to 2000. - Larry Friese and Anthony Zinni, alumni of the Basic School Class 1-66, which gathered aboard Marine Corps Base Quantico Oct. 3 and 4 for its first-ever reunion 51 years after graduating, pose together in the Leatherneck Gallery at the National Museum of the Marine Corps. Friese spent 5 years and one month as a prisoner of war in the Hanoi Hilton in Vietnam and later became an oceanographer for the Navy. Zinni is a retired Marine Corps general who served as commander in chief of United States Central Command from 1996 to 2000.

Veteran Marine officers gather for their first reunion after 51 years

Fifty one years after graduating from The Basic School in December 1965, 120 members of TBS class 1-66 gathered at Marine Corps Base Quantico for their very first reunion.

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U.S. Marines share conversation over dinner during Headquarters and Service Battalion Mess Night, at The Clubs at Quantico, Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va., Sept. 30, 2016. The Marine Corps mess night, a time honored tradition since the 1950s, builds Esprit de Corps with the Marines, providing camaraderie, food and entertainment, and toasts honoring the sacrifices of past and present Marines who have served in the Corps. (Photo by Lance Cpl. Yasmin D. Perez) - U.S. Marines share conversation over dinner during Headquarters and Service Battalion Mess Night, at The Clubs at Quantico, Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va., Sept. 30, 2016. The Marine Corps mess night, a time honored tradition since the 1950s, builds Esprit de Corps with the Marines, providing camaraderie, food and entertainment, and toasts honoring the sacrifices of past and present Marines who have served in the Corps. (Photo by Lance Cpl. Yasmin D. Perez)

Shenanigans ensue at H&S Battalion Mess Night

Headquarters and Service Battalion held a mess night Sept. 30 for non-commissioned officers and below. Sgt. Elaine Deloney, Manpower Management Officer Assignments, one of the organizers of the mess night, said the battalion may hold one mess night a year, though it depends on “whether the Marines are willing to come together to coordinate it.”

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Veterans gather for a QIMSA-sponsored hunt. QIMSA provides all-encompassing, expense-free outdoor experiences aboard Marine Corps Base Quantico for wounded warriors. Photo courtesy QIMSA. - Veterans gather for a QIMSA-sponsored hunt. QIMSA provides all-encompassing, expense-free outdoor experiences aboard Marine Corps Base Quantico for wounded warriors. Photo courtesy QIMSA.

Wounded Warriors experience hunting despite their injuries through sportsmen’s association

“I would like to end the program tomorrow, because it would mean that no more young people are getting injured at war,” said Fred Salo, president of the Quantico Injured Military Sportsmen Association (QIMSA) and head of the Range Control Section, Range and Training Area Management Branch, Training and Education Command.

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A volunteer guide with the Marine Corps Base Quantico Conservation Volunteer Program (CVP) kayaks out into the Chopawamsic Creek to set up a duck blind for wounded warriors participating in a hunt aboard MCBQ in Jan. Many CVP volunteers are active hunters, highlighting the strong connection between hunting and conservationism. - A volunteer guide with the Marine Corps Base Quantico Conservation Volunteer Program (CVP) kayaks out into the Chopawamsic Creek to set up a duck blind for wounded warriors participating in a hunt aboard MCBQ in Jan. Many CVP volunteers are active hunters, highlighting the strong connection between hunting and conservationism.

Hunters actively participate in conservationism aboard Quantico

Among non-hunters, there is sometimes the misconception that hunters don’t care about wildlife and the conservation of ecosystems.

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