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Pecan Valley Detachment #1170, Marine Corps League, Southern Division, Department of Texas. That is a pretty long moniker isn’t it. What does it mean. It means we are carrying on a tradition started by General John A. Lejeune in 1931 of carrying on the association with like minded Marines, Navy Corpsmen and others after leaving Active Duty. There is no difference in what we do today than what was happening in 1931. Just a few that gather together, conduct business and then swap (sometimes unconfirmed and stretched for emphasis) sea and land stories.
1931 detachment members consisted of Marines that had served in the West India and Siberian campaigns, Santo Domingo, Nicaragua, WWI and earlier deployments. There were veterans of Belleau Wood, Soissons, Meuse-Argonne and Blanc Mont. Today, we have veterans of Iwo Jima and other Pacific islands, The Punchbowl and Chosin Reservoir campaigns in Korea, Khe Sanh, Hills 885/886, Chu Lai and others in Vietnam, Operation Desert Storm, Operation Iraqi Freedom and numerous “Peace Keeping” actions in between. The talk is the same and the camaraderie is the same. The bond is forever.
We sometimes get busy and forget our heritage as Marines, Sailors, Soldiers and Americans. We must keep our heritage in our thoughts and teach others and remind each other that our way of life has been dearly paid for. We can do this by attending our meetings, getting involved in our communities, teaching the children and taking care of each other as well as our brothers and sisters outside of the Detachment. It takes the action of every member getting involved to have a lasting affect on our piece of the world.
Let us re-commit ourselves to the principles of the Marine Corps League and OUR Detachment, commit to take care of each other and make a difference in the upcoming new year. Linda and I wish everyone of you and your families a very MERRY CHRISTMAS and a HAPPY NEW YEAR. SEMPER FIDELIS
Billy B. Murphey Jr.
Commandant
Pecan Valley Detachment
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