SgtMaj Kent was born in Memphis, Tennessee. He completed recruit training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, South Carolina in March 1976 and was assigned to the 1st Marine Brigade.

In May 1978, SgtMaj Kent was transferred to Marine Security Guard Battalion where he served as a Marine Security Guard. He served at American Embassy, Kinshasa, Zaire and Panama.

In June 1981, SgtMaj Kent transferred to Fort Benning for Airborne School and Parachute Riggers School at Fort Lee, Virginia. In June of 1982 he was assigned as 2nd Air Delivery Platoon Commander, and parachute rigger billets in various commands aboard Camp Lejuene.

In February 1983, SgtMaj Kent was transferred to Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, California for duty as a drill instructor, senior drill instructor and battalion drill master with First Battalion. In January 1985, he was meritoriously promoted to Gunnery Sergeant.

In May 1985, SgtMaj Kent transferred to 3d Air Delivery Platoon as Platoon Sergeant. In June 1986 he transferred to Engineer Company, BSSG-1 1st Marine Brigade, Hawaii as Company Gunnery Sergeant. In March 1988, SgtMaj Kent was assigned to Noncommissioned Officers School, 1st Marine Brigade as the NCOIC.

In February 1989, SgtMaj Kent transferred to Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, South Carolina as a student at Drill Instructor School. After completion of Drill Instructor School, Sergeant Major Kent was assigned to Naval Aviation Officers Candidate School in Pensacola, Florida as a Drill Instructor, Chief Drill Instructor, and First Sergeant. In February 1990, Sergeant Major Kent was promoted to First Sergeant and assigned as First Sergeant, MATSG, Pensacola, Florida.

In June 1992, he transferred to 4th Marine Regiment for duty. In June 1993, he transferred to the Army Sergeants Major Academy, Fort Bliss, Texas. After graduation, in February 1994 he was transferred and assigned as First Sergeant, Battery L, 3d Battalion, 12th Marines. In December 1994, he assumed the duties as SgtMaj, 3d Battalion, 12th Marines.

In August 1997, SgtMaj Kent was transferred to the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, California where he was assigned duties as Sergeant Major Second Recruit Training Battalion and in September 1999 as Sergeant Major Recruit Training Regiment.

In May 2001, he was transferred to Marine Forces Europe/FMF Europe, Stuttgart, Germany where he was assigned the duties as the Sergeant Major of Marine Forces Europe/FMF Europe.

In April 2004, he was transferred to I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, California where he is presently serving as the Sergeant Major of the I Marine Expeditionary Force.

Born on 19 January 1950 in North Carolina, Lee enlisted into the Marine Corps on 28 March 1968. He graduated from the Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, SC in May, 1968 and completed Infantry Training at Camp Lejeune, NC in July, 1968. He was promoted to Sergeant Major on 1 January 1984 and appointed the 13th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps on 1 July 1995.

During his career he served in the following assignments:

August 1968-June 1969: Squad Leader, Platoon Sergeant and Platoon Commander with A Company, 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 3d Marine Division, Republic of Vietnam.

June 1969-February 1970: Sub Unit #1 U.S. Naval Hospital Camp Lejeune, NC.

March 1970-December 1971: Weapons and Tactics Instructor with the Infantry Training Regiment at Camp Lejeune, NC.

January 1972-July 1975: Drill Instructor and Instructor on DI School Staff, Parris Island, SC.

August 1975-July 1976: S-3 Operations Chief for Headquarters Battalion, 3d Marine Division.

August 1976-July 1979: Assistant Marine Officer Instructor in the NROTC Unit at the Citadel, Charleston, SC.

Summer of 1977: Platoon Sergeant for OCS NROTC Bulldog Course.

Summer of 1978: First Sergeant of OCS NROTC Bulldog Course.

August 1979-December 1981: First Sergeant of Headquarters and Service Company and Lima Company, 3d Battalion, 8th Marines, BLT 3/8, 2d Marine Division.

January 1981-October 1983: Inspector Instructor Staff First Sergeant for Company B, 4th AAV Battalion, 4th Marine Division, Jacksonville, FL.

November 1983-November 1985: Sergeant Major of 2d Battalion, 4th Marines, BLT 2/4, Camp Lejeune, NC.

December 1985-July 1988: Sergeant Major of 2d Recruit Training Battalion and the Recruit Training Regiment, MCRD Parris Island, SC.

September 1988-February 1991: Sergeant Major of Marine Corps Air Station, Iwakuni, Japan.

March 1991-May 1994: Personnel Sergeant Major, Headquarters, US Marine Corps.

June 1994-June 1995: Sergeant Major of Marine Forces Pacific.

July 1995-June 1999: 13th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps

November 1999: Transferred to the Retired List

Lee's personal decorations include: The Distinguished Service Medal; The Legion of Merit; Purple Heart (2 awards); Meritorious Service Medal; Navy Commendation Medal with Combat "V" (2 awards); Navy Achievement Medal (3 awards); and the Combat Action Ribbon.

Sergeant Major Harold G. Overstreet assumed the post as 12th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps on June 28, 1991.

Overstreet was born December 1944 in Houston, Texas. He entered the Marine Corps in June 1966 and completed recruit training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, Calif., followed by Basic Infantry Training School at Camp Pendleton, Calif.

Upon completion of school, he reported to Staging Battalion at Camp Pendleton, for further assignment to the 1st Military Police Battalion, 3d Marine Division, Republic of Vietnam. Returning to the states, he was reassigned to the Infantry Training Regiment at Camp Pendleton.

Overstreet subsequently completed successful tours on the Inspector-Instructor staff, Wichita, Kan.; recruiting duty in Des Moines, Iowa, and Detroit, Mich.; and returning to Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, as a junior drill instructor, senior drill instructor, Series Gunnery Sergeant and Chief Instructor, Reassigned to Drill Instructor School, he was an Instructor, Drill Master, and Chief Instructor.

After completing First Sergeant School, he was assigned to Special Projects at Drill Instructor School, where he undertook the enormous task of completely transferring the Drill Manual onto video tape for a more optimal use during instructional periods. His promotion to first sergeant in February 1979 led to his second assignment on Okinawa as the First Sergeant, Headquarters and Service Co. 8th Engineer Battalion.

Upon his return from overseas, he was the First Sergeant of both Company B and C, 1st Battalion, 4th Marines at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center, Twentynine Palms, Calif.

Promoted to his present rank in October 1983, Overstreet became the Inspector Sergeant Major, MCAGCC, Twentynine Palms. Returning to Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, he served as a Battalion and Regimental Sergeant Major in the Recruit Training Regiment. Transferring to Camp Lejeune, N.C., he served as the 6th Marines Sergeant Major. This assignment was followed by duty as Regimental Sergeant Major, 12th Marines, Okinawa.

On April 6, 1990, Overstreet was posted as Depot Sergeant Major at San Diego. He was selected as the 12th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps in April 1991, and assumed the post on June 28, 1991.

Overstreet's personal decorations include: the Meritorious Service Medal; Navy Commendation Medal; Navy Achievement Medal; and the Combat Action Ribbon.

Sergeant Major David W. Sommers assumed the post as eleventh Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps on June 27, 1987.

Sommers was born in St. Louis, Mo., on Feb. 18, 1943 and attended Bishop DuBourg High School. He enlisted in the Marine Corps on March 25, 1960. He underwent recruit training at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, Calif., then attended Infantry Training at Camp Pendleton, Calif.

Upon completion of Infantry Training, he was assigned as a Browning Automatic Rifleman with Company E, 2d Battalion, 1st Marines, 1st Marine Division, at Camp Pendleton. While with Company E, he was promoted to private first class, lance corporal, and corporal and served as a fire team leader and squad leader.

Transferring overseas with the 1st Battalion, 9th Marines, 3d Marine Division, Sommers served as a squad leader and platoon guide of Company D. Returning from overseas he reported to The Basic School, Quantico, Va., where he was assigned as a Hand-to-Hand Combat and Water Survival Instructor. While in this assignment, he was promoted to sergeant.

In 1964, he was transferred to Hawaii and assigned to Company K, 3d Battalion, 4th Marines, 1st Marine Brigade as a squad leader and subsequently deployed with that unit to the Republic of Vietnam in March 1965. During May of that year, he was assigned to the first Combined Action Company to be formed in Vietnam. He served as a squad leader and platoon commander of the Popular Forces Platoon. For his combat service in Vietnam, Sommers was awarded the Purple Heart and Navy Commendation Medal with Combat "V".

In April 1966, he was assigned to Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, S.C., for a tour as a drill instructor with Company K, 2d Recruit Training Battalion. While in this assignment, he was promoted to staff sergeant.

In 1968, he returned to Vietnam for a second tour, serving as Company Gunnery Sergeant of Headquarters Company, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division. He transferred back to Parris Island the following year for duty as a Senior Drill Instructor with Company E, 2d Recruit Training Battalion. Upon promotion to gunnery sergeant, he was assigned to the Drill Instructor School he served as Drill Master.

From December 1973 until February 1974, he attended the Marine Security Guard School, and upon graduation, was assigned to the American Embassy in Caracas, Venezuela, as Noncommissioned Officer-in-Change of the Marine Detachment.

Sommers was transferred to Henderson Hall, Arlington, Va., in August 1975, to serve as Instructor and Chief instructor of the Marine Security Guard School. While in this assignment, he was promoted to master sergeant and later redesignated to the rank first sergeant.

During August of 1977, he reported to the 3d Force Service Support Group on Okinawa, where he was assigned to the 9th Engineer Support Battalion. Ordered back to Camp Pendleton, Calif., he was assigned as the First Sergeant of the Marine Corps Tactical Systems Support Activity. He was promoted to sergeant major in October 1980, and was assigned to the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, as the Sergeant Major of the 2d Recruit Training Battalion.

In June 1982, he was assigned to Camp Lejeune, N.C., as the Sergeant Major of 1st Battalion, 10th Marines, 2d Marine Division. Ordered back to Quantico in December 1983, he served as the Sergeant Major of The Basic School. He then reported to the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center and 7th Marine Amphibious Brigade, Twentynine Palms, Calif., in July 1985, for duty as the Combat Center/7th Marine Amphibious Brigade Sergeant Major.

Sommers was assigned as the first enlisted Director of the Staff Noncommissioned Officer Academy at the Marine Corps Combat Development Command in Quantico, Va., in June 1987. He was selected as the 11th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps on June 18, 1987, and assumed the post on June 26, 1987.

Sommers' personal decorations include: The Legion of Merit; the Purple Heart; the Meritorious Service Medal with gold star in lieu of second award; the Navy Commendation Medal with combat "V" and two gold stars in lieu of second and third awards; the Navy Achievement Medal with gold star in lieu of second award; and the Combat Action Ribbon.

Sergeant Major Robert E. Cleary assumed the post of Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps on June 28, 1983.

Cleary was born in Tewksbury, Mass., on June 2, 1931, and graduated from Holyoke Trade High School in May 1949. He enlisted in the Marine Corps on Oct. 24, 1951.

He underwent recruit training at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, S.C., then attended a nine-week Demolition Specialist Course at Schools Battalion, Marine Corps Base, Camp Lejeune, N.C., where he was promoted to private first class. Upon completion of the school, he was assigned as the Battalion Demolition Specialist, Company B, 7th Engineer Battalion at Camp Pendleton, Calif. Promoted to corporal, he remained with the 7th Engineer Battalion until April 1953.

Cleary transferred overseas, where he joined the 1st Marine Division in Korea, as a Squad Leader and Right Guide with Company I, 3d Battalion. While in this assignment, he was promoted to sergeant. Returning from overseas, he reported to the 1st Rifle Company at the Navy and Marine Corps Reserve Training Center, Springfield, Mass. In early 1958, he returned to Camp Pendleton, for duty as a military policeman with the Military Police Company.

In May 1958, he was promoted to staff sergeant, and continued to serve in this assignment until April 1961, when he transferred to the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, Calif., for duty as a drill instructor.

Upon completion of his tour as a drill instructor, Cleary joined Headquarters and Service Company, 2d Battalion, 5th Marines, 1st Marine Division, for duty as a Section Leader, and later, Platoon Sergeant in the 81mm Motor Platoon. During February 1965, he transferred to H&S Company, 3d Battalion, 3d Marine Division, as a Platoon Sergeant and Platoon Leader in the Anti-Assault Platoon.

This assignment was followed by his first tour in Vietnam as a Platoon Leader, Company G, 2d Battalion, 1st Marines, 3d Marine Division, where he was promoted to gunnery sergeant. In August 1966, he transferred to Company F, 2d Battalion, 27th Marines, 5th Marine Division, for duty as Company Gunnery Sergeant. For his combat service in Vietnam, he was awarded the Silver Star Medal, the Navy Commendation Medal with Combat "V", and two awards of the Purple Heart.

He returned to San Diego for a short tour as a drill instructor in August 1967, at which time he was selected for promotion to first sergeant. He was reassigned to the 27th Marines as the Company First Sergeant. During March 1968, he returned to Vietnam, serving as the First Sergeant of Battery C, 1st LAAM Battalion, MACC-19, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing. Subsequently, he served as Company First Sergeant of Company G, 28th Marine Regiment.

Cleary then reported to H&S Company, 2d Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, as the Company First Sergeant, followed by his third tour in Vietnam as the Squadron Sergeant Major of HMM-165, MAG-36, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.

Upon his return from overseas, in May 1973, he was assigned to VMA-223, 3d Marine Aircraft Wing, Yuma, Ariz., where he attained his present grade and served as the Squadron Sergeant Major. In September, he was reassigned to the 2d LAAM Battalion, Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, as the Battalion Sergeant Major.

He reported to Headquarters Marine Corps, Washington, D.C., in September 1974, for duty as the Battalion Sergeant Major of Marine Security Guard Battalion, followed by duty as Personnel Sergeant Major. His next assignment was as the 3d Marine Division Sergeant Major in July 1979, then returned to Marine Security Guard Battalion as Battalion Sergeant Major.

On Jan. 1, 1982, Cleary was selected as the Sergeant Major of Marine Corps Development and Education Command in Quantico, Va. He was selected as the 10th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps on May 25, 1983, and assumed the post on June 28, 1983.

His personal decorations consist of the Silver Star Medal; three Air Medals; Navy Commendation Medal with Combat "V", and gold star in lieu of a second award; Navy Achievement Medal; two Purple Hearts; and the Combat Action Ribbon.

Sergeant Major Leland D. Crawford, the 9th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps passed away on Feb. 16, 1993.

Crawford was born in Sharon, W.Va., on Feb. 16, 1930. He attended East Bank (West Virginia) High School and later graduated from high school on Okinawa, Japan. He enlisted in the Marine Corps on Sept. 26, 1951 and underwent recruit training at Parris Island, S.C.

Following recruit training, he was assigned to Infantry Training School, Camp Pendleton, Calif. Upon completion of his training, he was assigned to the 1st Marine Division in Korea, where he served as a rifleman and artillery man until July 1953. He then reported to the 2d Marine Division, Camp Lejeune, N.C.

In June 1956, Crawford was assigned to his first tour of duty as a drill instructor at Parris Island where he remained until October 1958. He was then assigned to the 1st Marine Brigade in Hawaii, remaining there until October 1961. He returned to drill instructor duty, this time at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, Calif., until February 1964. After this tour, he was transferred to Twentynine Palms, Calif., as a gunnery sergeant with 4th Battalion 11th Marines.

He joined the 3d Marine Division on Okinawa in February 1965, and the following month sailed for Vietnam. In March 1966, he returned to Twentynine Palms, where he was promoted to first sergeant. He served as First Sergeant for Headquarters Company, Force Troops until 1967. Returning to Vietnam, he served as a Company First Sergeant, 1st Battalion, 4th Marines. During this tour he earned the Bronze Star Medal with Combat "V" and gold star in lieu of second award; and later a Purple Heart for wounds received on June 11, 1968.

Crawford was then transferred to Marine Barracks, Washington, D.C., as Company First Sergeant, Ceremonial Guard Company from October 1968 to December 1970. He again returned to Vietnam to serve as First Sergeant, Company D, 1st Battalion, 1st Marines.

In May 1971, he returned to Camp Pendleton where he was promoted to Sergeant Major. He was then assigned as Sergeant Major of 2d Battalion, 1st Marines until April 1974. He again returned to Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego to serve as Sergeant Major of the 1st Recruit Training Battalion until January 1976. The following year he served as the Group Sergeant Major of Marine Air Control Group 18 on Okinawa. He reported back to the 1st Marine Division in February 1977 and became Sergeant Major of the 11th Marine Regiment.

In May 1979, Crawford became the Sergeant Major of the 1st Marine Division and remained in that billet until his selection as the 9th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps. He served in that post from Aug. 15, 1979 until his retirement on June 30, 1983.

Crawford's personal decorations consist of the Bronze Star Medal with Combat "V" and Gold Star in lieu of second award; the Purple Heart Medal; and the Combat Action Ribbon. He was presented the Distinguished Service Medal for exceptionally meritorious serve to the government of the United States in a duty of great responsibility as the 9th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps.

Sergeant Major John R. Massaro assumed the post of 8th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps on April 1, 1977.

Massaro was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on May 22, 1930. He graduated from Orrville High School in Orrville, Ohio, in 1948 and enlisted in the Marine Corps on Aug. 6, 1948. He underwent recruit training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, South Carolina.

Following recruit training, Massaro was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 6th Marines, 1st Marine Division as a rifleman, before transferring to Marine Corps Base, Camp Pendleton, Calif. He remained there until March 1950. From Camp Pendleton, he was assigned to the Marine Barracks, U.S. Navy Supply Depot, Clearfield, Utah, as a security guard.

That was followed by the first of three tours as a drill instructor at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, Calif. He served on the drill field until April 1952, when he rejoined the 1st Marine Division in Korea. He was decorated for actions in combat during that tour.

From Korea, Massaro returned to San Diego for duty as a drill instructor and later as an instructor at Drill Instructor School. In August 1955, he was a company gunnery sergeant with the 1st Marine Division's Reconnaissance Company and later the 1st Force Reconnaissance Company, remaining there until November 1959.

Massaro was then transferred to Headquarters and Headquarters Squadron, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing in Iwakuni, Japan. He returned to the 1st Force Reconnaissance Company for duty as company Gunnery Sergeant and later as Company First Sergeant. In June 1963, Massaro returned to San Diego for a third tour as a drill instructor, serving as Chief Drill Instructor.

He then transferred to the Inspector-Instructor Staff of the 4th Reconnaissance Company in San Bernadino, Calif. In 1967, the Sergeant Major joined the 3d Engineer Battalion, 3d Marine Division, in the Republic of Vietnam. He was initially assigned as a company First Sergeant and later became the battalion Sergeant Major.

He next reported to the Marine Corps Recruiting Station in San Francisco, Calif., and served as Recruiting Station Sergeant Major until August 1972. He then returned overseas and served as group Sergeant Major of Marine Aircraft Group 36 on Okinawa. Following that tour, he reported to Headquarters Marine Corps where he served as Sergeant Major to the Inspector General of the Marine Corps.

In May 1976, he became Sergeant Major of the 1st Marine Division at Camp Pendleton, Calif., and remained in that billet until his selection as Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps.

Massaro's personal decorations include the Navy Commendation Medal with Combat "V" and gold star in lieu of second award; and the Combat Action Ribbon. He is also qualified to wear the Navy and Marine Corps Parachutist Insignia and Scuba Diver's Insignia.

Sergeant Major Henry H. Black assumed the post of 7th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps on June 1, 1975.

Black was born in Imperial, Pa., on Feb. 9,1929. A high school graduate of Findley High School in 1947, he enlisted in the Marine Corps on the April 12, 1948 and underwent recruit training at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, S.C. He was assigned to the 2d Marine Division at Camp Lejeune, N.C. after completing boot camp and served with Company C, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, and later, with Headquarters and Service Company, 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment.

Ordered to Korea in 1950, Black joined Company H, 3d Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division as the commanding officer's driver. As a private first class, he earned the Silver Star and Bronze Star Medal for heroic actions. He returned to the States in May 1951, and was assigned a member of the security force at Marine Barracks, Dahlgren, Va. He completed Recruiters School at Parris Island in July 1953, and was assigned as the Noncommissioned Officer-in-Charge, Recruiting Substation, Allentown, Pa.

Black served as a Platoon Commander of a heavy machine gun platoon with 1st Battalion, 9th Marine Regiment, 3d Marine Division in the Western Pacific area from August 1956 to November 1957 when he was ordered to Parris Island to attend Drill Instructor School. Upon completion of the course, he served consecutively as a junior drill instructor, a senior drill instructor, and finally, as a chief drill instructor in the Recruit Training Regiment.

In August 1960 he was transferred to Wheeling, W.Va., where he served as Noncommissioned Officer-in-Charge of the Recruiting Substation for the next four years. He served as a Company First Sergeant with Company D, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2d Marine Division from August 1964 to November 1965, and landed with the Marines sent to the Dominican Republic during that period.

Ordered to Vietnam in January 1966, Black served as First Sergeant of Company A, 1st Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division until February 1967. He was then assigned as First Sergeant of Casual Company, and later, as Sergeant Major, Headquarters Battalion, Marine Corps Development and Education Command, Quantico.

Black began his second Vietnam tour in June 1969, serving as Sergeant Major of the 2d Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division He was awarded his second and third Bronze Star Medals during his tour.

Returning to the States in April 1970, he was assigned as Sergeant Major of the Recruiting Station in Richmond, Va. He remained in that billet until August 1972, when he was transferred to Bremerton, Wash., as Sergeant Major of the Marine Barracks there.

Black was ordered to Iwakuni, Japan, in November 1973, as Sergeant Major of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing until November 1974, when he returned to the Marine Corps Development and Education Command as Sergeant Major of that command until his selection as Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps.

Black's personal decorations include the Silver Star, Bronze Star Medal with Combat "V" and two bronze stars in lieu of third award, the Purple Heart, the Navy Commendation Medal and the Combat Action Ribbon.

Sergeant Major Puckett served as the 6th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps from Feb. 1, 1973, until he retired from active duty on May 31, 1975.

Born March 6, 1926, in Waurika, Okla., he grew up in Roswell, N.M. He joined the Marine Corps on Feb. 18, 1944 at Santa Fe, N.M. and went through recruit training at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, Calif. Moving north, he joined the 5th Marine Division at Camp Pendleton. He trained with the division and as a rifleman and landed on Iwo Jima on D-Day, Feb. 19, 1945. Puckett later witnessed the famous flag raising on Mount Suribachi on Feb. 23, 1945.

Following the Iwo Campaign, he was sent back to Camp Pendleton where he served as a military policeman until his discharge in 1946.

Puckett returned to the Corps in July 1947 as and was ordered to duty at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego. In late 1947 he received orders to sea duty and spent 2 1/2 years aboard the cruiser Columbus. He was promoted to corporal in May 1948. Corporal Puckett then returned to San Diego where he served as a drill instructor until 1951.

As a sergeant he was ordered to Korea with Company G, 3d Battalion, 5th Marines and was promoted to staff sergeant in October 1951. While on patrol in June 1952, Puckett earned the Navy Cross for extraordinary heroism against a vastly superior enemy force. His patrol, operating well forward of a friendly outpost, was pinned down by the enemy. Puckett ordered a withdrawal covering his men with submachine gun fire, accounting for four enemy dead and although wounded in the left hand by grenade fragments, continued to cover his patrol's withdrawal. Upon returning to the outpost, Puckett discovered that three of his men were missing. He organized a small rescue party. After a brief skirmish in hostile territory, they located the missing Marines, two of whom were seriously wounded in the legs, and returned them to safety.

Newly promoted to technical sergeant, Puckett, following a brief period of duty at Camp Pendleton, returned to San Diego to attend the newly established Drill Instructor School. He graduated first in his class and was retained by the school as an instructor.

In July 1955 he was ordered to Korea where he served as an advisor for the Korean Marine Corps until September 1956. He was promoted to master sergeant in October 1955. Returning to Camp Pendleton he was assigned as a company First Sergeant and later as regimental operations chief with the 2d Infantry Training Regiment. During his tour there, he was promoted to first sergeant.

He became the First Sergeant of Marine Barracks, Pearl Harbor in April 1959 and was promoted to sergeant major in February 1960. In May 1962 he returned to Camp Pendleton as Sergeant Major of the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division and in April 1964 was assigned to the 3d Battalion, 5th Marines. He went to Vietnam with that battalion (redesignated the 1st Battalion, 3d Marines) in September 1965.

Following a two-year tour on the Inspector-Instructor Staff, 3d Battalion, 23d Marines, 4th Marine Division in San Bruno, Calif., he again returned to duty in Vietnam, serving as the Sergeant Major of the 7th Marines.

He was reassigned to Camp H. M. Smith, Hawaii, in September 1969 and served there until July 1970 when ordered to duty at Headquarters Marine Corps. He had been the Personnel Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps until he assumed duties as Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps on Feb. 1, 1973.

Puckett's personal decorations include the Navy Cross, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart, Navy Commendation Medal with Combat "V" and the Combat Action Ribbon.

Sergeant Major Clinton A. Puckett passed away on Sept. 3, 2002.

Sergeant Major Herbert Joseph Sweet was born Oct. 8, 1919 in Hartford, Conn., and the following year moved to Troy, N.Y. where he grew up and received his schooling. As a child, Sweet made his home with his uncle, Harold J. Nash of Troy.

He enlisted in the Marine Corps on Feb. 26, 1937. Following recruit training at Parris Island, S.C., he saw duty with Marine detachments at Quantico, Va.; at the 1939 World's Fair in New York; and in Trinidad.

Throughout World War II he served with the 21st Marines, 3d Marine Division moving with the unit to New Zealand and Guadalcanal for training. He saw combat on Bougainville where he was promoted to platoon sergeant then gunnery sergeant. He was wounded in action during the landing on Guam in July 1944 and, following hospitalization, rejoined the 21st Marines for the Iwo Jima campaign. There he earned the Bronze Star Medal with Combat "V" for exposing himself to enemy fire in order to rescue his wounded company commander, two other Marines and a corpsman. Wounded twice, he was evacuated twice.

On his return to active duty, he served as First Sergeant of the 4th Recruit Training Battalion, Parris Island; on the Marine Detachment at the Naval Ordnance Plant, Macon, Ga.; and on the Marine Detachment of the USS Missouri. He also served two separate tours at Camp Lejeune, first as an infantry chief, and following the Korean conflict, as Regimental Sergeant Major of the 2d Marines and Field Sergeant Major of the 2d Marine Division, respectively.

He requested duty in Korea on the outbreak of hostilities there, and in 1951 saw combat as rifle company First Sergeant with the 5th Marines. He was wounded in action that October and earned the Navy Commendation Medal with Combat "V".

He returned from Korea in July 1952 and served thereafter as Assistant to the Professor of Naval Science, NROTC Unit, Columbia University, New York City for two years. Following his second tour of duty at Camp Lejeune he was stationed in the Philippine Islands as Barracks Sergeant Major, Subic Bay from 1958 to 1960. Then he served as Sergeant Major of the 6th Marine Corps Reserve and Recruitment District, Atlanta, Ga. In July 1964 he was named Division Sergeant Major, 3d Marine Division, Fleet Marine Force in the Far East. While serving in this capacity, he was selected as the 4th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps by a board convened in Washington and assumed his new post on July 16,1965.

His personal decorations include: the Bronze Star Medal with Combat "V"; Navy Commendation Medal with Combat "V"; Purple Heart with three bronze stars in lieu of the forth award; Navy Achievement Medal; and the Combat Action Ribbon.

Sergeant Major Thomas J. McHugh served as the 3d Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps from June 29, 1962 until July 16, 1965. The sergeant major passed away in February of 2000.

McHugh was born Dec. 23, 1919 in New York City, the son of the late Peter and Bridget Porter McHugh, immigrants from Scotland and Ireland, respectively. He grew up in Philadelphia, Pa., where he received his education, and enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve on Oct. 3, 1938. He was called to extended active duty Nov. 7, 1940, and integrated into the regular Marine Corps in May 1943.

Following his entry into service, McHugh served at the Philadelphia Navy Yard; the Marine Barracks, Quantico, Va.; the Training Center, New River (later Camp Lejeune), N.C.; and the Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point, N.C. Promoted to sergeant in March 1942, he joined Company C, 1st Battalion, 1st Marines and that June sailed aboard the USS Barnett from San Francisco for the Pacific area.

During World War II, he was attached to the 1st Marine Division with his unit, taking part in the Guadalcanal, Cape Gloucester, and Peleliu campaigns, and rose to platoon sergeant and gunnery sergeant prior to his return to the United States in November 1944. He was awarded the Purple Heart for wounds suffered in the Peleliu operation.

On his return to the United States, McHugh served as Noncommissioned Officer-in-Change of the Rifle Range, Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point. In July 1945, he was ordered back to Camp Lejeune where he served as Company First Sergeant and Company Gunnery Sergeant with the Infantry Training Regiment, with the 1st Infantry Battalion of the 1st Special Marine Brigade, and with the 2d Battalion, 8th Marines. He was redesignated a technical sergeant in December 1946 and remained at Camp Lejeune until September 1948.

Transferred to the West Coast, he embarked in November 1948 for Guam, where he joined the 5th Marines, 1st Provisional Marine Brigade, Fleet Marine Force, as Company First Sergeant and Company Gunnery Sergeant. Upon the outbreak of hostilities in Korea, he took part in combat operations with the 1st Marine Brigade and, subsequently, the 1st Marine Division as First Sergeant, Company H, 3d Battalion, 5th Marines during the Pusan Perimeter, Inchon, Seoul, and Chosin Reservoir campaigns. He was promoted to master sergeant in Korea in December 1950, and returned to the States in March 1951.

That summer he was assigned briefly as Assistant Battalion Sergeant Major of the Officer Candidate Class Battalion, Special Training Regiment, Parris Island, S.C. In August 1951, he began a 3-year tour of duty with the U.S. Naval Reserve Officer's Training Corps unit at Yale University. He served there as Assistant Marine Officer Instructor, and Noncommissioned Officer-in-Charge of Recruiting and enrolling candidates for the Officer Candidate Class and Platoon Leader Class programs.

McHugh returned to Camp Lejeune in August 1954, and served briefly as Acting Sergeant Major of the 2d Engineer Battalion, 2d Marine Division before filling the billet of Division Field Sergeant Major. He was promoted to the rank of sergeant major, Dec. 31, 1955.

In July 1957, he again embarked for duty overseas with the 1st Marine Brigade, Fleet Marine Force, Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. During his three years there, he served consecutively as Sergeant Major of the 1st Marine Brigade, the 2d Battalion, and the 4th Marine Regiment (Reinforced).

In July 1960, he was assigned as Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps Landing Force Development Center, Marine Corps Schools, Quantico. The following May, he became Sergeant Major of Marine Corps Air Station, Quantico. While serving in this capacity, he was selected for the Corps top enlisted billet, and assumed his new duties as Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps on June 29,1962.

Following his tour as Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, he was ordered to Okinawa, Japan, for duty as Sergeant Major of Camp Smedley D. Butler, serving in that capacity until September 1966.

Upon his return to the United States, McHugh became Sergeant Major, Marine Corps Schools Quantico, Va. Upon redesignation of that command, he was Sergeant Major of Marine Corps Development and Education Command. Transferred to Camp Lejeune, N.C. in May 1968, he served as Sergeant Major, Force Troops, Fleet Marine Force, Atlantic until April 1969, when he was ordered to the Republic of Vietnam.

In February 1970, he was transferred to Okinawa, Japan, and assumed his new duties as 1st Marine Aircraft Wing Sergeant Major until his retirement on Dec. 1, 1970.

McHugh's personal decorations include: the Navy Commendation Medal with Combat "V", and the Purple Heart.

Sergeant Major Francis Drury Rauber, the 2d Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, died on Feb. 19, 1991. He served as the Marine Corps senior enlisted from Sept. 1, 1959, until his retirement from active duty on June 28, 1962.

Born July 10, 1901, in Rochester, N.Y., Rauber graduated from high school there in 1918, then saw two years active duty in the National Guard. He began his first enlistment in the Marine Corps on Dec., 9, 1921, rising to the rank of sergeant prior to his honorable discharge in February 1926. During this time, he attended recruit training at Parris Island, S.C., then was assigned to the 1st Marine Brigade at Port au Prince, Haiti; the 5th Marine Regiment, Marine Expeditionary Force, the forerunner of the Fleet Marine Force; the Marine Barracks, Norfolk, Va.; and the 29th Company, 4th Regiment, Marine Corps Base, San Diego, Calif.

Upon the Outbreak of World War II, he again offered his services to the Marine Corps, and on May 1, 1942, reenlisted and was re-appointed to the grade of sergeant. In January 1943, he completed First Sergeant's School at the Philadelphia Navy Yard. His service in the rank of Sergeant Major dates from February 1943 when he was named Post Sergeant Major at the New York Naval Shipyard, Brooklyn, and Sergeant Major of the 3d Marine Corps Reserve District.

In March 1948, he was transferred to the West Coast for assignment to Fleet Marine Force, Pacific as Sergeant Major with the 9th Marines, 1st Provisional Marine Brigade. Arriving in Guam, Mariana Islands in May 1948, he served in this capacity until November, and in Tsingtao and Shanghai China until April 19409, when he returned to Camp Witek, Guam.

In March 1950, Rauber embarked for the United States for a brief assignment as Sergeant Major, Inspector-Instructor Staff, 19th Infantry Battalion, Rochester, N.Y. Ordered to Cherry Point, N.C. in January 1951, he served consecutively as Squadron and Group Sergeant Major with MCGIS-5 and MACG-1, 2d Marine Aircraft Wing. In March 1952, he joined the Marine Corps Air Station, Miami, Fla. as Operations Squadron 3 Sergeant Major, becoming Headquarters Sergeant Major in June 1953.

Transferred to Washington, D.C. in April 1954, the Sergeant Major began a four-year tour of duty as Sergeant Major of the Personnel Department, Headquarters Marine Corps. In May 1958, upon being transferred to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, he became Sergeant Major of Fleet Marine Force, Pacific. Following this assignment, he returned to Headquarters Marine Corps and in September 1959 assumed the Marine Corps top enlisted billet as Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps.

Sergeant Major Wilbur Bestwick, the first Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, died July 10, 1972, at the Stanford University Hospital, San Francisco, Calif. He was interred at the Alta Mesa Memorial Park in Palo Alto, Calif.

Bestwick was born on Nov. 27, 1911, in Sabetha, Kan., and graduated from high school there in 1932. He enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1934 and received his basic training at San Diego, Calif.

The Sergeant Major saw pre-World War II duty at sea aboard the USS Louisville, and served at Marine posts in Bremerton, Wash.; San Diego, and Camp Elliott, California. Appointed a Sergeant Major in 1943, he saw World War II combat while serving in this capacity with the 3d Marine Division in the Bougainville and Guam campaigns.

On his return to the States, in December 1944, Bestwick served as Sergeant Major of the Mare Island (California) Shipyard. He was transferred to San Francisco in 1945, and completed a four-year tour of duty there as Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps Depot of Supplies. In 1949, he became Sergeant Major of the Parris Island Marine Corps Recruit Depot.

During the Korean conflict, he joined the 1st Marine Division in Korea in October 1952 as Division Sergeant Major, and after a year overseas returned to the States. For excellent service in Korea he was awarded the Navy Commendation Ribbon with Combat "V". In 1954, he began a two-year assignment as Sergeant Major, Inspector and Instructor Staff, 1st Air Delivery Company, San Jose, Calif.

Transferred to Headquarters Marine Corps, Washington, D.C., in June 1956, Bestwick served as Sergeant Major to the Secretary of the General Staff until May 23, 1957, when he assumed the newly-established post of Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps. He served in this capacity until he retired from active duty on Sept. 1, 1959.

His personal decorations include the Navy Commendation Medal with Combat "V".