MARINE CORPS BASE HAWAII, KANEOHE BAY, Hawaii -- On Dec. 15, 2001, one young man made a decision to take “the road less traveled” and joined the Marine Corps, which, by his own admittance, turned a former high school football star into a man.
“I just wanted to do something different,” said Cpl. Steven R. Rodriguez, ammunition technician, Headquarters Battalion, Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay. “All my friends went off and did other stuff. I wanted to do something that none of my friends were doing.”
Rodriguez said that joining the military was a spur of the moment thing.
“I was straight out of high school,” said Rodriguez, an Amarillo, Texas native. “I wanted to see the world and visit different places, so the Marine Corps seemed like a good way to get to do that.”
As it happened, Rodriguez was in the Delayed Entry Program during the attack on Sept. 11, 2001.
“To tell you the truth, my parents didn’t believe me at first,” he admitted. “But, reality hit them when I left for boot camp.”
Rodriguez describes his parents as the type of people who very rarely show emotion.
“I think I look up to my Mom more than anyone,” said Rodriguez. “My family wasn’t very financially stable, but my Mom did her best.
“She went to college and changed things around to give me and my brother and sister a better life. So in a way, I’m in the Marines to do the same thing for her — to help her have a better life.”
Rodriguez said since he’s been a “Devil Dog” he has deployed to Korea, Thailand, Australia and Japan for different training events.
“The best deployment I had was to Thailand,” said the Paloduro High School graduate. “I enjoyed working with the Thai military. They were cool people to work with.”
When Rodriguez isn’t in foreign countries he is playing on one of the Marine Corps football teams on base.
“I played defensive end and tight end for the Combat Service Support Group Outlaws,” said Rodriguez, 22. “I’ve been playing football since I was in fifth grade. I actually just injured my knee, so I’m out for the rest of the season.”
Another thing Rodriguez does to keep busy during his off-duty hours is to help his younger brother promote his music.
“My little brother raps, so I help him get out there and get heard,” said Rodriguez. “I want him to be successful in what he does, so I do anything in my power to back him up in his decision on what he does with his life.”
Because he has several deployments under his belt, Rodriguez said he has met a lot of people from different areas of the world.
“Another good thing that the Marine Corps has done for me is to help with my attitude,” said Rodriguez. “I’ve matured a lot and have become more responsible. I used to be very short tempered and now I’m a lot more patient.”
Rodriguez said he is not certain as to what the future holds for him but said he is thinking of cashing in on his GI Bill.
“Since I’m not reenlisting, I’m thinking about doing security for a company that disarms nuclear and biological weapons,” said Rodriguez. “But being in the Marine Corps has been a journey I will never forget.”