Photo By Cpl. Unique B. Roberts | Marines with Marine Air Support Squadron 1 pass around posters illustrating events in...... read more read more
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CHERRY POINT, N.C. - Marine Air Support Squadron 1 hosted the national historian for the National Montford Point Marine Association Feb. 27 at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, hoping to learn a piece of history.
Telling the story of Montford Point and the Marines who trained there, Rev. Shannon Sabsook connected the past to the present for the Marines of MASS-1, hoping to spread awareness of their sacrifice for today’s generation of Marines.
“Preserving legacy is our national motto for the Montford Point Marines,” said Sabsook. “Legacy and terminology like kinship are real close together. In other words, [the Montford Point Marines] are passing on something to us and it’s our job to preserve the hard work and the diligence that they gave while in the Marine Corps.”
The Montford Point Marines attended segregated recruit training at Montford Point Camp during WWII. Today, the Montford Point Marine Association and its members dedicate their time to honoring and spreading awareness of the sacrifice of the first black Marines.
During the class, the staff noncommissioned officers learned of the integration of African Americans into the Marine Corps at Montford Point and their contributions to the Corps since. Montford Point produced Marines who served with distinction during WWII, Korea and into Vietnam.
Segregated training ended in 1949 with the full integration of the armed forces.
The MASS-1 Marines, steeped in tradition as they are, received a new perspective on the sacrifice of the Montford Point Marines and their legacy, according to Sgt. Maj. Monroe C. Boykin, the squadron’s sergeant major.
“I’ve been here for two months and this is the first time we’ve held a class like this,” said Sgt. Maj. Monroe C. Boykin, the sergeant major of MASS-1. “I think [the class] went well. There was a lot of information that my Marines and I did not know. It was insightful and it gave an overall awareness of the Montford Point Marines.”
While the Montford Point Marines and their history was the focal point of the lecture, Boykin believes many facets of Marine Corps history are equally important and that every Marine should invest in that history.
“It’s not just one focus of Marine Corps heritage that’s important,” said Boykin. “It’s having awareness of all aspects of the Marine Corps, of all history.”
| Date Taken: | 03.06.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 03.06.2014 11:59 |
| Story ID: | 121589 |
| Location: | CHERRY POINT, NC, US |
| Web Views: | 123 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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