Photo By Lance Cpl. Luke Rodriguez | U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Joseph Newman, a rifleman with Lima Company, Battalion...... read more read more
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PACIFIC OCEAN – Enveloped by steel and surrounded by ocean, U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Joseph Newman is dipping into uncharted waters. Aboard the USS Portland, Newman was recently promoted from private first class to lance corporal. The promotion marks a career milestone as he enters the next chapter of his Marine Corps career – deployment. It is an achievement driven by family, shaped by his father’s unfinished journey in the Marine Corps, and carried forward through Newman’s own service.
The path that led Newman to this moment began long before he stepped onto the ship. His idea of becoming a Marine developed gradually throughout his childhood, shaped in part by conversations with his father, who shared stories about his boot camp experience before a medical condition prevented him from continuing his career.
“My dad would talk about it, tell me about the Marines and all the buddies that he’d made in the short time that he was there,” Newman said. “Every single challenge, I was- not scared, but I was nervous about it because of everything I was told… but it definitely did drive me to be better and push myself harder, not only just my dad but my family in general has definitely given me a lot more drive.”
Making his father proud was a major motivator, pushing himself to his limits physically and mentally during boot camp in order to ultimately succeed. The challenges he’d heard about growing up lived up to their expectations, but he persevered and his father could not have been happier.
“My dad was beyond proud of me,” he said. “I haven’t really ever seen him cry, but when he saw me in my blues, graduated, he was in tears and extremely proud of me for overcoming the challenges I faced throughout the 3 months of training. He knew I could do it as soon as I got on the yellow footprints. He never doubted me, and I feel like that’s what kept me going, that I wanted to make him proud and see that I had succeeded at something.”
That unwavering support displayed by his family is now mirrored by his experiences in the fleet. While he had close friendships growing up, Newman describes Marine relationships as something a bit different.
“A lot of people understand friendship, but they don’t understand brotherhood like in the Marines,” he said. “You don’t have friends; you have brothers that will literally put their life on the line for you.”
As a rifleman with Battalion Landing Team 3/5, 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, the past few weeks aboard the Portland have helped Newman to refine his skills as a Marine. In addition to his individual growth, living in the small confines of the ship has brought the Marines of his unit closer together and created opportunities for him to learn from senior leaders with deployment experience.
“I’m pretty tall, hitting my head is a very common occurrence,” he joked. “But I genuinely do enjoy [being on ship]. We’re getting to talk to our seniors a lot more because we’re in a confined space, so we get to pick their brains.” Hearing about his leadership’s operational experience reinvigorates Newman’s desire to deploy and explore the world.
“That’s what I joined the Marine Corps to do,” he said. “It was to deploy and go travel the world… that’s what the Marine Corps is, going on a MEU all around, and you get more training, good training, you’re training in different countries, who wouldn’t want to do that?”
Beyond training, Newman looks forward to experiencing different cultures and ways of life, while remaining focused on the Marine Corps’ inherent warfighting mission.
“I don’t want a war to happen, I don’t want any conflict to happen or anything like that,” he said. “But I feel like right now, if anything were to happen, we’re trained for it.”
Serving alongside Marines from across the country has also shaped his experience. Despite an incredibly diverse array of cultures, upbringings, and perspectives, Newman believes the shared goal of earning the title Marine creates an immediate connection between all.
As upcoming training draws closer, he remains focused on building stronger connections and sharpening his warfighting skills as a lance corporal of Marines. With some senior leaders preparing to transition out of the service and pass on their responsibilities, Newman is eager to step up, learn, and grow alongside his peers.
“Building the bond with the guys is what I really care about,” he said. “I don’t care where we go, we can go to a cold place or a hot place, but the memories are what’ll stick.”
For Newman, the Marine Corps is defined by shared hardship, mutual trust, and the ability to find purpose even in difficult moments—an extension of the family values that he holds close.
“You have to find the good in the bad,” he said. “That’s really what it’s all about.”
| Date Taken: | 12.18.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 12.18.2025 20:40 |
| Story ID: | 554900 |
| Location: | CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 19 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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