Photo Information

CAMP AL QA'IM, Iraq (Sept. 9, 2005) -- Dallas, Ga., native Corporal Richard E. Scarlett III, mechanic, Motor Transport section, Headquarters & Service Company, 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team-2, enlisted in the Marine Corps in 2003 after to be like his father, retired Marine Master Sgt. Richard E. Scarlett Jr., who recently retired (Official U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Jerad W. Alexander)

Photo by Sgt. Jared W. Alexander

Dallas, Ga, native serves to follow dad’s footsteps

24 Sep 2005 | Sgt. Jerad W. Alexander 2nd Marine Division

Dallas, Ga., native Cpl. Richard E. Scarlett III spent his entire life around the Marine Corps, traveling to the various Marine posts around the globe, long before he could even vote, drive, pay taxes, or even wear the uniform of a United States Marine. Scarlett, now serving with the Motor Transportation Platoon, Headquarters & Service Company, 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, traveled the world with his father, Richard E. Scarlett Jr., a now-retired Marine master sergeant. While growing up, he moved with his family to various Marine Corps postings including Camp Pendleton, Okinawa, Quantico, and Camp Lejeune, according to Scarlett. “Growing up around the Marine Corps helped me adjust to some of the things I’ve experienced in the Marines,” said Scarlett, who served in Afghanistan before coming to Iraq. “Moving around was pretty easy for me.”Roughly two years after graduating Quantico High School in Quantico, Va., Scarlett followed his father and enlisted in the Marine Corps in 2003. “He didn’t push me, but thought it was a good idea,” he said. “I thought the Marine Corps would help me grow up as a person,” Scarlett said. “Before, I was lazy and didn’t do much, now I have a better work ethic.”He also joined because he wanted to be like his father, he said. While in the Marine Corps, Scarlett’s father was an ammunition technician. Working with ammunition, however, wasn’t something Scarlett wanted. “I like to work with my hands, so [motor transportation] was the best thing,” he said. During his first year in the Marine Corps, if there was anything Scarlett didn’t understand about the Marine Corps, he could simply turn and ask his father, which, according to Scarlett, was a big help. Currently, Scarlett isn’t sure about what exactly he wants to do in the future but is investigating the possibility of going to school to become a crime scene investigator.