Photo By Staff Sgt. Christian Cachola | U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. Delvin R. Smythe, the Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS)...... read more read more
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MARINE CORPS AIR STATION YUMA, Ariz., (June 30, 2017) -- It starts with a formation of yellow footprints, a large group of strangers scrambling in confusion, and a few hardened vets who orchestrate the chaotic masses like a well-oiled machine.
For the sergeant major of Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Sgt. Maj. Delvin R. Smythe, that day started on Oct. 14, 1987, at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego.
Upon graduating boot camp, then-Lance Cpl. Smythe went on to complete motor vehicle operators course and embarked on his journey into the Marine Corps.
Smythe has been all over the globe. He has been stationed in California, Cuba, Texas and Japan, to name a few. Throughout all of these places, Smythe, and his outstanding professional conduct as a Marine, usually found himself in a position of leadership.
“He’s a Marine’s Marine; he’s a warrior and he doesn’t just talk the talk, he walks the walk,” professed Col. Ricardo Martinez, the former commanding officer of Marine Corps Air Station Yuma. “Everything he does is with passion. He puts 110 percent into it, no matter what it is.”
Martinez and Smythe served together for three years as the commanding officer and sergeant major of MCAS Yuma.
“Sgt. Maj. Smythe, thank you for allowing me to always be able to count on you and your counsel because I wouldn’t have been able to have done this without you,” said Martinez.
The three years that Smythe spent on MCAS Yuma is just the “cherry on top” of his long, illustrious 30-year career. Smythe will finally be able to “drop his pack,” un-blouse and take off his last pair of utilities and combat boots after he retires from Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, today.
“Every time I take off a set of cammies, I always pat them down. I’m not looking for a pen, I am looking for a four-leaf clover, a rabbit’s foot or a horseshoe because I know I was extremely lucky to become a United States Marine,” explained Smythe.
| Date Taken: | 06.30.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 07.07.2017 13:53 |
| Story ID: | 240176 |
| Location: | MARINE CORPS AIR STATION YUMA, AZ, US |
| Hometown: | PEEKSKILL, NY, US |
| Web Views: | 282 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, The Marine’s Marine: Sgt. Maj. Delvin R. Smythe Bids Farewell to the Corps, by Sgt George Melendez, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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