17 Year Old New Mexico Marine Earns Big Award

A New Mexico Marine, fresh out of boot camp, not only earned a high United States Marine Corp honor, he also got a promotion that is rare for a teenager.

17-year-old Johnny Acee, who has wanted to be a Marine since he was in elementary school, just graduated #1 in his USMC basic training class. Not only was he #1 out of 584, he also earned the Chesty Puller Recruit Company Honor Graduate Award.

Chesty Puller was a decorated Marine who served in World War II and the Korean War as well as Guadalcanal, Cape Gloucester, Peleliu and the battle with Sandino in Nicaragua.

Surviving United States Marine Corp basic training in an amazing feat all by itself. On top of that AND earning the prestigious Chesty Puller Award, Acee also had another honor coming. He was promoted to E3 lance corporal, something that is very rare for a recruit who's only a teenager.

“There is no feeling like it, to belong to something that’s greater than yourself, “ Acee said. “Anyone that is maybe interested or looking into it, I would say, there’s really no down sides to it. There are so many benefits, there’s so many opportunities, and you’ll really discover your ‘why’ while you’re in training.” - rrobserver

The Marines are always looking for "a few good men". If you're interested, you can click here or contact an El Paso USMC recruiting office at these numbers:

• West Side:
• 7212 N. Mesa (915) 234-8013
• East Side:
• 1875 Saul Kleinfeld Dr Ste 101 · (915) 539-0228
• Central
•  6600 Montana Ave Suite F2 · (915) 433-1218