Rct. James R. Blake, an 18-year-old native of Salem, Ohio, is currently training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, , in hopes of earning the title United States Marine. Blake is training with Platoon 1021, Delta Company, 1st Recruit Training Battalion, and is scheduled to graduate April 7, 2017. “I believe all Americans are handed freedom from those who served in the past,” said Blake, who graduated Salem High School in 2016. “I want to repay that freedom.” Approximately 19,000 recruits come to Parris Island annually for the chance to become United States Marines by enduring 12

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Rct. James R. Blake, an 18-year-old native of Salem, Ohio, is currently training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, , in hopes of earning the title United States Marine. Blake is training with Platoon 1021, Delta Company, 1st Recruit Training Battalion, and is scheduled to graduate April 7, 2017. “I believe all Americans are handed freedom from those who served in the past,” said Blake, who graduated Salem High School in 2016. “I want to repay that freedom.” Approximately 19,000 recruits come to Parris Island annually for the chance to become United States Marines by enduring 12 weeks of rigorous training. Parris Island is home to entry-level enlisted training for 49 percent of males and 100 percent of females in the Marine Corps.

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Keywords: basic, boot, camp, corps, depot, di, drill, eastern, err, grad, graduation, instructor, island, marine, marines, mcrd, parris, pi, pisc, recruit, recruiter, region, training, usmc