My name is SGT. Alan Merriman, I am in the CTARNG. I am a Chinook Crew Chief. I also am student at the University of COnnecticut studying Finance. I was deployed back in 2003 to Afghanistan and Kuwait. I am 23 yrs old and my birthday is June 6th.
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Hello! I am the mother of just-promoted PFC Ethan Brooks (see article on “New Marine Speaks at Lancaster, PA Synagogue”—now archived on this site). Ethan is in the USMC, and is currently completing his MOS training as a weather observer for the Marine Air Wing, studying at Keesler Air Force Base in Mississippi. We are from Lancaster, PA, members of Temple Beth El (Conservative synagogue). Ethan will be starting college in August at St. John’s College in Annapolis, so it’s nice to know there is a Jewish Maryland family posting to this site! Where are you located there?
It is interesting to hear that your son will be attending St. John’s. If there’s any place that’s the exact opposite of the discipline and rules of the Marine Corps it’s St. John’s. But maybe that’s exactly what your son is looking for.
Best of luck to him. It is a beautiful school and a wonderful town.
The funny thing is that when my son interviewed at St. John’s, long before the Marine enlistment was even a twinkle in his eye, the Admissions interviewer said to Ethan, “We are the Navy Seals of academe.” Ethan liked that—he likes to be in the vanguard, to be an elite. Now, lo and behold, he’s on the vanguard of academe and the military! According to someone he spoke with at St. John’s when he was getting serious about enlistment, there are a couple of other reservists (what branches, I don’t know) at St. John’s, and they said they’d “work with him” to make his status manageable. We’ll see. He did defer admission a year so that he could do his Marine training, which he’s now heading to complete (MOS). I’m grateful he’s right across the street from the Naval Academy at St. John’s, and I’ve urged him to go to the Jewish services there regularly and get to know the chaplain there. I think he’ll need that connection for several reasons.
Lynn, PMM of PFC Ethan
Marine Corps Detachment, Keesler AFB, MS
Lt. Fishman, which branch of the military are you with? I know that Air Force and Marines all work out of Andrews, perhaps other branches do as well. I ask because my son, a Marine reservist, is investigating switching drill base to Andrews, since travel from his college to his current base is very difficult.
I am a systems engineer in CA, who worked for the DOD. I live near the Marine Base, Los Angeles Air Force Base and the Naval Base. I had assignments at all of them.
Please let me know if I can assist any Jews in Green at any of them. I am presently sending boxes to an address I obtained from Soldiers Angels. I can be reached at
I truly qvelled, when I read about the training you are successfully going through. It takes intelligence and stamina to be where you are.
I made many friends, working for the military, some of them are in high level security positions. I joined this site because I only knew of one other jewish person at my base. He wore a small Yarmulka, and his call sign was “Rabbi”. He and some others were pilots who flew in the movie, “Top Gun”.
Sending packages is the least I can do, I can be reached at the following: Ms Sylvia Crespi Vitt;
, 714-968-8704, Let me know any limitations you may have, for addressing packages. One thing I learned to live with, was regs.
Did you have any time to do any Normal celebrating? The war news (that we get in California), is NOT pretty. I hope you and your buddies are OK.
If you give me your APO address I’ll send you a birthday box. Complete with some of my financial newspapers and magazines. Investor’s Business Daily, and Trader Magazine. I too, am studying finance, I spent too long as an Engineer, now its time to do this.
I have another family member with a birthday. June birthdays and graduations are popular.
Please let me know what your Finance curriculum at Connecticut U. is about? Some of the Southern California Universities NEAR me, have the strangest courses. Would you believe Ocean Surfing??? I would love to see what courses they cover??
