Photo By Sgt. William Perkins | U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. David Suy (right), an electronic key management system...... read more read more
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UNDISCLOSED LOCATION - Many Marines consider one another brothers and sisters-in-arms; a family bound by an oath to protect our nation from enemies foreign and domestic. But two Marines demonstrate a traditional meaning to brotherhood.
Staff Sgt. David Suy, 31, and Cpl. Sokadom Suy, 21, found themselves deployed together with the Special Purpose Marine Air Ground Task Force – Crisis Response – Central Command.
Raised in Hendersonville, N.C., the brothers grew up in a family of three boys, including Bunna Suy, who recently concluded his time in the Marine Corps as a sergeant after eight years of service.
“[Bunna] and I were really surprised when our brother joined,” said David. “We figured he’d go to college instead of join the military.”
Although college had crossed Sokadom’s mind, he wanted to follow in his older brothers’ footsteps.
“While I was going through high school I heard stories of them traveling around the world, getting a lot of nice things and experiences,” said Sokadom.
Sokadom weighed his options, teetering between college and the Marine Corps.
“I figured college would get me in some debt … so I made the decision to enlist in the Marines, something I knew I would be successful in,” said Sokadom.
David isn’t just a brother to Sokadom, but also a mentor who helped him become the man he is today.
“Our father passed away when Sokadom was one year old,” said David. “So I was also a father-figure for him as well.”
David recounted taking time off from school to help raise his brother while their mother worked.
“I remember teaching him how to ride a bike,” said David “Those memories are the most vivid memories I have from our childhood.”
The brothers laughed as Sokadom added one of his favorite moments from their youth.
“One of the more distinct memories I have is when [David] came home after graduating high school with his friends and they taught me how to throw a football,” said Sokadom. “That’s one of the happiest moments I’ve had.”
Not only did Sokadom join to follow his brothers in continuing the family’s Marine Corps legacy, but he followed David’s career path as well.
“He’s a field wireman,” said David. “When I joined, I was a field wireman before I did a [lateral] move to become an [electronic key management system] manager.”
After joining 12 years ago, David said he didn’t call home often but their brotherhood never faltered.
“I was very distant from home,” said David. “Now that we’re here in the Special Purpose MAGTF together it’s like we never left each other - like no time has passed. Not only am I serving with my brothers in green, but my actual blood brother. It seems like yesterday that I saw him cross the yellow footprints and graduate boot camp. That was two years ago and now I’m deployed with this guy. It’s pretty amazing how small the Marine Corps is.”
Marines around the brothers notice their strong bond even after being away for so long.
They look at Sokadom and say, “I know where you got your sense of humor from; from your older brother.” David added, “It’s like we have our own language.”
Being deployed the brothers always have support from their number one fan; their mother.
“She’s taking our deployment like a champ,” said David. “She’s proud to say that she has three sons in the Marines, so she’s for us being here. She’s happy to tell her co-workers we’re serving our country.”
When their mother discovered that her youngest son was deploying, she was also informed her oldest son would be joining him.
Although the two are working together in the SPMAGTF, David is here on temporary additional duty from Marine Central Command in Tampa, Fla., to support the mission in the area of operation.
“We just found out that [David] is finishing the tour with me,” said Sokadom. “It’s kind of funny; it took me joining the Marine Corps to spend time with my brother. When he joined I rarely saw him for almost 12 years, so the past two months have been the longest stretch of time that we’ve spent together. That’s a big thing. The Marine Corps actually brought us back together.”
The two Marines try to spend as much time as they can with each other while they have the opportunity.
“I don’t know what other people say about having a brother in the Marine Corps,” said David. “But I love it. I never thought I’d see him in the Marines Corps, but here we are spending 24/7 together.”
| Date Taken: | 01.11.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 01.14.2015 01:23 |
| Story ID: | 151942 |
| Location: | (UNDISCLOSED LOCATION) |
| Hometown: | HENDERSONVILLE, NC, US |
| Web Views: | 226 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
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