Master Sergeant Phillip Griego may have retired, but the career Marine does not plan to leave the Corps behind.
His military career took him from Dixon to Italy to the Middle East. It eventually landed him in Arizona, where he currently lives with his two sons and his wife, formerly Frances Gonzales, also of Dixon.
Griego, a Peñasco High School graduate, said the decision to join the Corps was not a difficult one for him.
“I was 19, and I always wanted to be a Marine and serve my country,” he said.
Griego said enlisting in the Marine Corps does not run in his family, though his parents were supportive of the decision. He said he chose that branch of the military because he knew it would be difficult.
“It’s because of the challenge,” he said. “I went in well-prepared.”
Griego said he ran a lot, worked on his upper-body strength and did chores around his parents’ farm to help him get ready for training. He said he even studied Marine Corps history and traditions and talked to other Marines to get a better idea of what he was in for.
“I got prepared physically and mentally,” he said. “When I got there, everything was in place.”
Even after he was out of training, Griego felt drawn to the Corps’ boot camps. He said he thought teaching new recruits about Corps traditions and a mind-set that emphasizes honor, duty and country would be a satisfying endeavor, so he wanted to do it himself.
He found that not everyone comes into the Corps as well-prepared as he was — mentally or physically. However, he said it usually doesn’t take long for stragglers to catch up.
“Once you break ‘em in and get ‘em going, they continue on by themselves.” he said. “They adapt very well.”
He said a sense of pride and purpose instilled by their trainers also helps drive recruits; Griego also taught those under him to take care of each other on duty and off.
“Make them understand that first they’re Marines. Everything else is second,” he said.
Griego said becoming a master sergeant took a lot of hard work and dedication on his part, from going to special schools to staying in shape and keeping up his marksmanship.
“You have to be on top of your game at all times,” he said. “There’s a lot of stuff that goes into it.”
Griego said he spent nine months serving overseas during Desert Storm/Desert Shield, the Gulf War following Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990. He said his training had prepared him well for the job, and his group spent its time on logistics and supporting aircraft. He said he volunteered the past five years to go to Iraq or Afghanistan, but the Corps kept him in the U.S. to train marines.
“I never got the chance to go,” he said. “It wasn’t my time.”
For her part, Frances Griego said she has enjoyed the lifestyle her husband’s 20 years in the Corps have afforded her family.
“We moved over the course of time probably about six times,” she said. “I love the moving.”
She said she enjoys meeting new people, and she really liked living in Italy. She said the couple’s boys — Emilio, 12, and Phillip Jr., 10 — also like the moves.
“They get excited,” she said.
Phillip Griego said it would make him happy if Emilio and Phillip Jr. decided to join the Marines, but so far he’s not sure if they are interested.
“They don’t say anything,” he said.
Griego retired this year, after 20 years of service. He said he will continue to do outside work for the Corps and plans to remain near the Corps’ base in Yuma, Ariz.