Photo By Lance Cpl. William Horsley | Lance Cpl. Brandon Avila, a Marine with Hotel Company. 2nd Recruit Training Battalion,...... read more read more
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MARINE CORPS RECRUIT DEPOT PARRIS ISLAND, S.C., -- Over a year ago, Lance Cpl. Brandon Avila promised his mother that he would become a Marine and give her and their family a better life. Avila never let go of that promise, even when he was injured last June and spent the next eight months in recovery.
“I had a goal when I came on the island, I made a promise to my mom,” said Avila. “I wanted to be different from my brothers, prove my family wrong, and give my mother a better life.”
Avila arrived in May 2024 and was three weeks away from graduating when a foot related injury became too severe for him to continue.
“My buddies told me just to keep pushing, but one day I couldn’t take the pain anymore, so I went to medical,” said Avila.
Being removed from training is something every recruit fears, especially for medical reasons. The road to recovery is long and arduous, and many recruits do not return because they lose the motivation that brought them here.
“At first, it was okay and I was fine, I could take the time to get stronger and keep pushing, but the longer I was on the island, the harder it got,” said Avila.
When recruits are removed from training due to an injury, they are sent to Romeo Company, Support Training Battalion. Recruits sent there are allowed to call home to their families and let them know their condition. The first person Avila called was his mother.
“Mom, I’m not going to quit, I'm going to keep pushing through for you, Dad, and the family,” said Avila. “I’m going to do what I promised, I’m going to keep pushing, and I’m not going to quit.”
Throughout his recovery, Avila’s promise to his mom is what kept him motivated. Her encouragement gave him the strength he needed not to give up on training.
“She told me, ‘We will support you, I support you, this is your dream and your goal, don’t quit and keep going,’” said Avila. “All I could say to her was Thank you, Mom.”
Eight months later, Avila was finally allowed to return to training. When he found out, he called his dad, who told him that his family was there for him, to pray every day, and to push through the pain. Avila had an emotional send-off with his dad before he resumed training.
“He started to tear up over the phone, and I told him not to, cause if he did, I would,” said Avila. “I told him, thank you, Dad, for everything. I’ll see you soon.”
To properly rebuild physical fitness, Avila had to return almost to the beginning of training. This meant he had to repeat almost every training event during recruit training.
“I didn’t mind having to repeat the training events, I just focused on passing the PFT and getting to go home, pushing through the pain until I could become a Marine,” said Avila.
Avila had to do events like rifle qualifications and drill competitions over again, as well as Basic Warrior Training, when Avila was injured the first time.
“I was nervous going back to do BWT because that’s when my feet had hurt the most,” said Avila. “Happily, my feet were fine and I knew I was doing great.”
Avila completed both BWT and The Crucible without incident and started the 15k hike that finishes under the iconic ‘We Make Marines’ sign. Despite being exhausted and in pain, Avila and the recruits around him encouraged each other to keep going and stay strong as they hiked.
“When we started the cadence, I got excited, and when I saw the sign, I started to tear up because it meant I would get to go home,” said Avila. “I was crying a little bit, because I would finally get to see my Mom, Dad, and my family.”
When recruits complete the hike, they receive their Eagle, Globe, and Anchor from their drill instructors during a ceremony meant to commemorate the transformation into a United States Marine. Avila was awarded his EGA by his original senior drill instructor from over a year ago, Staff Sgt. Efren Sarmiento
“He told me, ‘You earned this, you finally made this, and you get to go home,’” said Avila.
After over a year of training, Avila will be one of the few Marines to leave Parris Island as a Lance Cpl. And will continue training at Marine Combat Training in the School of Infantry East, N.C.
“I finally did it, I could feel myself crying, the recruits around me congratulated me, they told me I did it and that I finally would get to go home,” said Avila.
(U.S. Marine Corps story by Lance. Cpl. William Horsley)
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| Date Taken: | 05.23.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 05.23.2025 11:25 |
| Story ID: | 498832 |
| Location: | PARRIS ISLAND, SOUTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 19 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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