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IRR Marines put life on hold following recall

CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. — Cpl. Ronald White thought he was done with war.

After serving two tours in Afghanistan and two in Iraq, he decided to return to civilian life, bidding the Corps farewell more than a year ago.

He got engaged, tried his hand at college and eventually decided to go to bartending school. He was head bartender at a saloon in a coastal North Carolina town near Camp Lejeune’s back gate when he got pulled back to active-duty for another year, one that will mark his fifth deployment to combat.

“I was pretty devastated,” White said of his reaction to the recall order. “It’s like winning the lottery, but the exact opposite. Afghanistan wasn’t so bad. Our first push into Iraq in 2003, it was bad. I’ve lost a lot of very good friends.”

He expressed mixed emotions about returning to the Corps and Iraq shortly after he — and nearly 200 other Marines in the Individual Ready Reserve — reported to Lejeune May 5 on recall orders.

Many said they were shocked when they got recalled. With a population of about 60,000 IRR Marines, the odds of getting picked for involuntary activation are generally pretty slim.

But as Marines who’ve been snatched back can attest, a contract is a contract.

Tapped for duty

The IRR consists of Marines fulfilling the remainder of their eight-year contractual obligations, usually four years, and those who have chosen to stay in when their contract is up.

Under the contract, IRR Marines are required to abide by certain rules, including providing Marine Corps Mobilization Command in Kansas City, Mo., with their up-to-date contact information and attending annual musters.

But, with multiple deployments and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan straining active-duty resources, Marines in the IRR are being asked to do more.

In July 2006, President Bush authorized the Corps to activate up to 2,500 Marines in the IRR at any given time. The last time Marines in the IRR were involuntarily recalled for duty was during the Korean War.

MobCom, which is responsible for the administration and mobilization of the Individual Ready Reserves, only recalls IRR Marines in the second and third years of their four-year contracts, to fill critical shortages in active and Selected Reserve units.

“We’ve done this twice now,” said Maj. Gen. Andrew Davis, MobCom commanding general, in a telephone interview. “The first involuntary activation group is in Iraq.”

The second group was notified earlier this year that they were to report for duty this month.

Sgt. James Kaiser planned to wrap up his last semester at George Mason University outside Washington, D.C., when he got his letter.

“I went straight to the bar after I got my notification,” he said.

But this self-described “dead-broke college student” said he could use the money he’ll get paid on active duty.

MobCom has a historical attrition rate of 65 percent to 69 percent, so fewer than half of the 2,000 who received orders earlier this year will actually report to their activation units.

The order doesn’t automatically mean a Marine will find himself back in active duty. IRR Marines may request exemptions. Exemption packages are reviewed by a board of officers and staff non-commissioned officers, and appeals go directly to Davis for review.

“We have been generous in our judgments on those exemptions,” he said.

The numbers prove it. More than 500 of the 2,000 IRR Marines notified this year did not have to report because of medical reasons, according to MobCom officials. Another 369 were not mobilized through the Delay, Deferment and Exemption process in which the IRR Marines proved hardship. And, 379 chose to return to active duty, affiliate with a Selected Marine Corps Reserve unit or Individual Mobilization Augmentee or complete an inter-service transfer.

That leaves a little more than 600 reporting to II Marine Expeditionary Force at Lejeune and I MEF at Camp Pendleton, Calif., for duty this month. They’ll serve a seven-month deployment in Iraq during their year-long activation.

Those selected were chosen principally because of their rank, experience and military occupational specialties. The men and women are non-commissioned officers, senior lieutenants and captains.

“We’re finding that about 80 percent of the Marines who are being activated have been to Iraq or Afghanistan once, about 40 percent twice and 20 percent once,” Davis said. “That’s pretty remarkable. We’re getting a combat-experienced, mature Marine who is coming back on active duty.”

What the IRR does for you

The IRR is one way for Marines fulfilling the remainder of their contracts to make some extra cash and expand their professional military education.

“We do have a lot of opportunities out there that are particularly great for students, where they can come back on duty in the summertime and earn a Marine Corps salary,” said Col. Lisa Hynes, MobCom assistant chief of staff of operations.

One reason it’s important for IRR Marines to keep MobCom updated on their contact information is so the command can contact Marines about upcoming opportunities, Hynes said. For example, IRR Marines can work in their MOS with a nearby Reserve unit or participate in Marine Corps Martial Arts Program training.

The command’s Web site, https://mobcom.mfr.usmc.mil/MOBCOM.asp, maintains a running list of job and continuing education opportunities.

“IRR Marines can request voluntary activation for short periods of time to, say, build roads in Belize,” Davis said.

Attending the required annual musters is another way IRR Marines can find out more. During these typically half-day musters, which are held monthly, senior staff NCOs explain how Individual Ready Reservists get promoted and earn Reserve retirement points and talk about active-duty opportunities, said MobCom spokesman Maj. Winston Jimenez, in an e-mail responding to questions.

“Also, the screening musters are now more than just a mix of administrative activities led by MobCom Marines, but also bring a consortium of federal, state and non-profit agencies with the joint mission of providing IRR Marines with the support and education to make their time in the IRR effective and informative,” Jimenez said.

Organizations such as Military OneSource, the Department of Veteran Affairs, state veterans groups, consortiums providing educational aid, Marine-4-Life, Labor Department, Helmets to Hard Hats and other veteran-friendly groups are at musters to provide information to Marines, he said.

Back to the fight

A vast majority of the Marines who reported to Lejeune earlier this month have deployed at least once to Iraq or Afghanistan, said Col. Jason Seal, commanding officer of the Deployment Processing Command/Reserve Support Unit. Of the 194 who turned out, 147 have deployed at least once to the combat zones.

“I can’t believe I’m in cammies,” said Cpl. John Hale, as he sat inside the building that houses Lejeune’s Reserve Support Unit.

Other Marines, many shocked that they’d been recalled, nodded as if acknowledging Hale’s sentiment.

They came from all over the country — Texas, Georgia, Delaware, Ohio, New Jersey and Maryland — leaving behind their families, young children and careers. Some put their aspirations for a college degree on hold.

They were three days into their two-week check-in process at the unit, time spent updating paperwork, visiting medical to be vaccinated and waiting to hear which II MEF units they’d be assigned. For the time being, they settled into squad bays — shell shock to men and women who’ve become accustomed to the privacy of their own homes.

Their MOSs include radio and ammunition technicians, cooks, artillery, even a K-9 handler. That surprised some of the Marines, who assumed grunts were primarily the ones being recalled.

“I’m in artillery and I thought I wouldn’t be recalled because you don’t hear much about big guns over there anymore,” said Cpl. Dean Delacruz.

He was asleep when his wife smacked him on the head with the FedEx envelope containing his orders.

“I’m here to do a duty,” he said. “You know what you do when you sign that contract.”

Sgt. Joan Ferreira was one month away from making detective in the New York Police Department when he packed up and left the busy streets of the Big Apple.

“When I got the orders, I wasn’t expecting it,” he said. “I look at it this way — if me being here means one less Marine getting killed over there, then this is where I’m supposed to be right now.”

Sgt. Kenneth Waynick said he’d heard Marines were being recalled, so he was not exactly shocked when he got his letter. The orders actually helped him make a decision he’s been pondering since he got out of the Corps more than a year ago.

“It makes the decision to enlist easier,” he said. “Once I get [in Iraq], I’ll probably re-enlist there.”

Opting to be activated for a year was somewhat of a relief for Sgt. Matthew Hill. “I tried the reserves and didn’t like it,” he said. “I actually am considering re-enlisting. I’d really like to go to [officer candidate school] eventually.”

Not every one of the 194 who checked into the unit earlier this month was exactly prepared. During formation of one of the groups, some Marines wore civilian clothes.

“The vast majority, as you can see, are in shape,” Seal said. “They still have an active-duty mindset. There are Marines here who are a little overweight. We try to make a reasonable adjustment for them.”

That adjustment is getting back into a physical training routine. Once these Marines are released to the general forces, they’ll be required to pass the Corps’ physical fitness test. Before that happens, the Marines are going to the School of Infantry-East for refresher training.

And as these Marines prepare to head to Iraq, more in the IRR will likely receive recall orders this year.

“We have a requirement that we are now just beginning the sourcing for another 800 Marines,” Davis said. “They would probably report at the end of the year.”

Sooner than later, that means 2,000 more letters will be sent out.