| AR RAMADI, Iraq, March 9, 2007 -- Hit with the news that he was about to be a father, Johan S. Arenas knew he had to make a change and make it fast.
Arenas, now a 20-year-old machine gunner for Weapons Company, 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, in Ar Ramadi, Iraq, saw his life heading in the wrong direction as a troubled teenager.
Receiving failing grades in school, having repeated trouble with the law and working dead-end jobs, Arenas was ill prepared to support a family. At the age of 17, fatherhood forced Arenas to take a hard look at his life and responsibilities.
“I knew I needed something to change in my life,” said Arenas, a native of Queens, N.Y. “If it didn’t, I probably would have ended up in jail.”
Hoping to stand up to his new responsibility, Arenas looked to military service as a way forward, targeting the Marine Corps as his new beginning. Before that step could be made however, Arenas needed to make some changes on his own, and rise to the standards required for military service.
Arenas attended night and weekend courses to raise his grades in high school, and steered clear of previous troubles to attain his eligibility.
“The coming of my son pushed me to change,” said Arenas. “I became more focused on my family and my future.”
Arenas enlisted into the Marine Corps as an infantryman on June 23, 2004, only a month after the birth of his son on May 20, 2004. Although Arenas had already taken strong steps in the right direction in order to join the Corps, becoming a Marine gave him the qualities and support he needed to support a family.
“The Marine Corps set me up for success and I took it from there,” said Arenas, who has achieved his current rank of corporal in less than three years of service.
Since joining the Marine Corps, Arenas has been able to successfully support his family while preparing for the future. In February of 2005, Arenas bought a house for his family through accumulated savings and a veteran’s loan. |
