Semper Fidelis

One of if not the most common question high school seniors get asked is “What are your plans for next year?”. When North Quincy High School Senior Brian Rodrigues is asked this question, he gets to give a pretty brave and courageous answer. Though not final, he gets to say that he plans on joining the United States Marines.

Brain, or B-Rod as he is more commonly known as, is your average high school senior. In the classroom, he has maintained a 3.5 GPA. He is a member of the football team as well as the boys lacrosse team. He also works at The Blarney Stone which is a pub in Dorchester, Massachusetts. During the summer, he works in the Parks Department for the City of Quincy.

As everyone knows nowadays, college can be very expensive. The military first got on his radar because, “College seemed too expensive and I didn’t think I could afford it”. So he began to look down the military path and decided that the Marines was the branch he wanted to enlist in. He said, “The Marines have the stereotype of being the best branch and say so in their quote, “the few, the proud”. Which is contrary to the other stereotype that Marines eat crayons. For those of you that don’t know what the stereotype is, Brian describes it as, “basically because a lot of people like to say that Marines are the dumbest branch so a lot of people call them crayon eaters because that is what a child or someone with a low IQ would do.” Regardless of the stereotypes, joining any branch of the military is not frowned upon and it is a courageous decision by all those willing to enlist.

In the spring of 2021, Rodrigues joined the Marine Corps Delayed Entry Program. This is a process that takes place at the recruiting station in Boston. Brian described the process, “First I had to meet with my recruiter then I had to sign off on my agreement and then one day have my parents sign off on my agreement.” He then completed a physical, took drug tests and the ASVAB test. The ASVAB test is a multiple choice test administered by the United States Military Entrance Processing Command, used to determine qualification for enlistment in the United States Armed Forces.

Since then he has been keeping up with his Marines commitment. He has been attending physical training with other kids who are also in the delayed entry program. There aren’t many in the military that enjoy PT. Brain said, “At first PT sucks really bad, a lot of HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) workouts. You will be feeling sore and not wanting to come back. Not all of his time with the Marines involves sweating and being sore. This past fall, Brian attended a luncheon at the Convention Center in Boston with the Marines. The Commandant, General David H. Berger, who is the highest ranking officer in the US Marine Corps, was there and Rodrigues said, “it was nice to be around many fellow marines.”

Upon graduation, Brian will be sent to Parris Island, South Carolina on June 20th, 2022 for the always grueling boot camp and spend the following 13 weeks there. Rodrigues is optimistic, he is looking forward to “shipping off to boot camp because I want to get away from my hometown for once.” He is very excited about the traveling aspect of the Marines. If he could choose where he could be stationed he says, “Anywhere on the west coast or Okinawa, Japan because I want to see more than just the east coast. Brian plans on doing either artillery or infantry. Infantry are basically front lines that are sent to combat at any time. Artillery supports infantry by firing explosives to enemies.

After he serves the required four years with the Marines, Brian plans on returning to Quincy and trying to become a firefighter with the Quincy Fire Department. If he chooses not to continue with the Marines, he will attend college and possibly play college football. No matter what path he chooses, he will have success because of his determination and positive attitude.