Photo By Cpl. Erin Tansey | Staff Sgt. Herman Franklin and Xinggang Wang pose with the Alpha Company sign at the...... read more read more
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PARRIS ISLAND, S.C. -- Out of all the recruits that come to Parris Island for training, 10 percent never make the march across the parade deck—sometimes, even ones the drill instructors wanted to keep.
Such was the case for Xinggang Wang, a recruit from Platoon 1062, Alpha Company, 1st Recruit Training Battalion, who was medically separated less than a month away from earning the title of Marine.
“We didn’t want him to leave when he got dropped,” said 1st Sgt. Jeremy Lirette, company first sergeant. “We wanted to keep him. He’s the type of Marine recruit drill instructors want.”
Even though he struggled learning the special drill movements for carrying a guidon, Wang was the platoon guide from the start, said Staff Sgt. Herman Franklin, the platoon’s senior drill instructor.
“He never gave up, and that’s what set him apart from everyone else,” Franklin said.
At the same time, he was the oldest recruit in the platoon at the age of 29—he turned 30 on the first official training day. Yet, during training, he forgot how old he really was after keeping up with the younger recruits in every physical training session.
“I knew I was old, so I didn’t want to be an [infantryman],” Wang said. “I knew that this was the best service in the world, but I joined to not just protect countries, but learn how to protect myself.”
Wang, born in Beijing, came to the United States, July 23, 2008, as a political reassignment from China. Before coming to the states, he had studied in South Korea and learned Korean and Japanese on top of his first language, Mandarin Chinese.
When he came to the states, he did not know how to speak English, he said.
He always wanted to join the Marine Corps, Wang added. He had played drums for a long time and had enlisted to become part of the Marine Corps band.
“He was well above average,” said Staff Sgt. Christopher Jamison, drill instructor. “He gave up everything to be a Marine. He had a job that he quit to come here. He had a lot of motivation to be here, and we don’t get very many recruits like him.”
When Wang was dropped for medical reasons, Lirette said the entire platoon was affected—including the drill instructors.
“It was devastating. We didn’t expect it to happen,” Franklin said. “The platoon was really down but we pressed on.”
Before leaving his unit for the recruit separation platoon, Franklin gave Wang his personal Eagle, Globe and Anchor, congratulating him for being a great recruit and worthy of the title Marine.
Though he was no longer in training, Wang told his drill instructors and the chain of command at the company that he would return to see his platoon graduate.
True to his word, Wang sat in the reviewing stands as Plt. 1062 and the rest of A Company marched across the Peatross Parade Deck as Marines, Aug. 12.
“It meant everything to me and to the platoon that he would take time from his busy schedule to see his fellow Marines he would have graduated with walk across the parade deck,” Franklin said.
Wang’s dedication to the Marines in his platoon made him a better man than most, Lirette said.
He had been in touch with his drill instructors online and over the phone since he left, but his impact on the new Marines will go far beyond the military, Lirette said, who hopes they take away the pride, dedication and ability to stand up for beliefs like Wang.
After leaving Parris Island, Wang said he returned to New York City to work at the John F. Kennedy Airport, where he was promoted upon his return to his old job.
“I’m glad to see them all. I’m proud,” Wang said. “I have a lot of respect for the young American generation who joins the military.”
| Date Taken: | 08.19.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 08.29.2011 14:16 |
| Story ID: | 76138 |
| Location: | PARRIS ISLAND, SC, US |
| Web Views: | 419 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Former recruit returns to see platoon graduate, by Cpl Erin Tansey, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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