About Us

David Monroe enlisted in the Marine Corps 11 January 1982 at the age of 17. Graduating from 3rd Battalion, Parris Island 14 August 1982 he was assigned to Landing Support Battalion, Charleston Naval Base and subsequently Long Lines Company, Brooklyn, New York as a multi-channel radio operator. Completing two, six-week sessions of Officer Candidate School in 1984 and 1985, David was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant upon graduation from Saint Francis College in Brooklyn, New York. Upon completion of the Basic School in 1986, David attended the Infantry Officer Course and was then assigned to 2nd Battalion, 6th Marines as a Rifle Platoon Commander. From 1987 through 1992 David served twice as a Rifle Platoon Commander, Target Information Officer, Detachment Executive Officer, TOW Missile Platoon Commander, and TOW Company Executive Officer. He completed two deployments with the 22nd MEU and one with MarDet UNITAS. Departing active-duty February of 1992, Captain Monroe then joined the Full Time Support (later transitioned to Active Reserve) Program in August. He spent five years at the School of Infantry as a Company Commander, Legal Officer and Battalion Executive Officer. Duty with Marine Corps Base, Camp Lejeune was spent as the Base Mobilization Plans and Destructive Weather Officer. Leaving the Active Reserve Program for the Individual Ready Reserve, then Major Monroe joined Diplomatic Security (DS) 1 February, 1999. He joined the Secretary of State’s Protective Detail and protected Madeline Albright and Colin Powell until late 2001 when he returned to active duty after 9/11. Returning to DS in 2003, he served as an Assistant, Regional Security Officer in Pristina, Kosovo and was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. In 2004 he was assigned to the New Orleans Resident Office as a Criminal Investigator and joined the 4th Marine Division completing deployments to Okinawa and Korea. David spent his final 18 months in New Orleans dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. After a DS assignment to the Naval War College in 2007, David decided to return to active duty and spent the next four years with the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit. His assignments included a deployment as the Future Operations Officer and a second deployment as the only reserve officer to assume the Executive Officer billet. During those four years and three deployments, David supported the MEU at 5th Fleet in Bahrain, represented the MEU at 4th Fleet during the Haiti Earthquake of 2010, and deployed aboard the USS Bataan during the Arab Spring. This remains the second longest deployment since the end of World War 2. Completing his period of active duty, David was promoted to Colonel and again transitioned to the reserve component. Returning again to DS in 2012, David was assigned to the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) in New York and was the conduit between the FBI and Department of State during the Benghazi Investigation. Subsequent to the JTTF assignment David served in Baghdad from 2014-2015 overseeing the Tactical Operations Center and Greensboro, NC as a case agent (2015-2017) and the Resident Agent-in-Charge (2017-2019). David retired from the Marine Corps on 1 June 2016 while supporting the History Division. His final assignment with DS was Branch Chief for the Advanced Tactics, Leadership, and Skillsc (ATLaS) Program, Foreign Affairs Security Training Center (2019-2021). Since retirement David has enjoyed all water-oriented activities, including kayaking, fishing, swimming, and boating. He holds a Merchant Mariner Credential, 25-Ton Captain License, is a past Post Commander, VFW Post 9960 (2021-2022), and current President of the Marine Corps Mustang Association since May 2023. As of 14 August 2023, David is again a Special Agent (Rehired Annuitant) with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. This specified assignment has included close protection of two, retired, 4-star generals due to persistent threats from an overseas nation. David has been married to his wife Scarlet (a retired Marine Corps Major and civil servant) for 29 years and they reside in Cape Carteret, North Carolina.

Shawn Hughes graduated as the Company Honorman for Kilo Company, Plt 3058, 3rd RTB, MCRD San Diego in Sept, 1990. From 1991 -1994, he served as a mechanic, Plane Captain, crew chief and Collateral Duty Quality Assurance Representative on CH-53Es, deploying from MCAS Tustin to the USS Okinawa (LPH-3) and to MCAS Futenma on Okinawa; deploying from MCAS Futenma for the 35th SPMAGTF. In 1994, Cpl Hughes was assigned to the Marine Aviation Detachment (MAD) and Rotary Wing Aircraft Test Directorate aboard NAS Patuxent River. While assigned to the MAD, Sgt Hughes served as the Color Sergeant and was selected as the Marine of the Year for 1995 and 1996. Attending college courses with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (Extended Campus), Sgt Hughes was selected for promotion to SSgt and selected as the Marine Corps Institute Graduate of the Year for 1997. Selected for The Meritorious Commissioning Program, Shawn was commissioned a 2ndLt upon completion of the 166th OCC. After joining the Marine Corps Mustang Association (R-2678) and upon completion of The Basic School in 1998, Lt Hughes was assigned to NAS Pensacola for training as an Aircraft Maintenance Officer (6002). In 1998, Lt Hughes served briefly at MALS-36 aboard MCAS Futenma, before being assigned as the Maintenance/Material Control Officer for HMM-262. Following multiple land and ship-board deployments as part of MAG-36 and the 31st MEU, 1stLt Hughes was assigned as the Power Plants Officer for MALS-36 in late Sept 2001, serving until transfer to Naval Air Facility, Atsugi as the Officer In Charge of the Support Equipment Rework Facility. Deploying in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003, Capt Hughes was the Officer in Charge of the Naval Air Pacific Repair Activity Central and Remote Field Detachments. Upon return from deployment, Capt Hughes was assigned as the Marine Liaison/Senior Marine and Instructor for the Aircraft Maintenance Officer School aboard NAS Whiting Field. While serving concurrently as the Director for Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Maintenance and Technical training and Instructor/Course Manager for the Naval Aviation Maintenance Program Indoctrination Course, Capt Hughes was designated a Master Training Specialist and was selected as the Naval Education and Training Command Officer Instructor of the Year for 2005. Selected for Promotion to Major, Capt Hughes was transferred to MALS-26 aboard MCAS New River as the Operations Officer. Maj Hughes deployed with MALS-26 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom as part of the Advance Party for MAG-26 in 2008, then with MALS-26 in 2009 returning to CONUS in 2010. Maj Hughes was reassigned to VMMT-204 as the Aircraft Maintenance Officer and served in that billet until transfer in 2011 to the Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training aboard NAS Pensacola where he served as the Operations Officer until his retirement in October of 2013. Shawn was named to the Marine Corps Mustang Association Board of Directors in 2022 and currently enjoys the privilege of serving as the Association’s Vice President.

For a high school senior, options were limited as there were few to no opportunities for a young person in a rural farming community, where the only jobs were farmhand jobs, or to enlist in the service. I became aware of my connections to the Marine Corps. My father's brother, a Marine Sergeant, had been killed in action in 1966. One of my mother’s brothers had been a Marine in the early sixties. One of my mother’s brothers-in-law was a Marine tanker in the late fifties. And a family friend and a personal hero had been a Marine in the late fifties, too. These men played a significant role in my determination at eighteen and 2 weeks to enlist in the Marines' delayed entry program. Also critical to this decision to join the Marines was that my father had forbidden me from enlisting in the Marines. So, being a teenager and always at odds with my father, it didn't hurt that I knew it would perturb him to no end, so the decision was easy. An open contract at eighteen took much of the early career out of my hands. I was given the 0300 MOS out of boot camp. At Camp Lejeune's Receiving, I volunteered for Recon, and my interest in Intelligence and intelligence gathering took hold. I reenlisted as an Intelligence Analyst, and my career progressed from Corporal through to Chief Warrant Officer 2. A Marine Corp reorganization pushed me into the Ammo field. I retired as a CWO3 in early 1999 to ensure I would not be a part-time father and partly because I knew it was time. I always strived to be the best I could be, and I was gifted with various duty stations and experiences for that effort. I currently work in the Healthcare industry for a Clinical Engineering company as a Regional Manager with responsibilities for several hundred Associates working in hospitals along the East Coast. My wife Kyung-ok and I are celebrating our 39th Anniversary in 2024 and we are the proud parents of two daughters, and we have two grandchildren. Michael Graham

Andrew Jones began his Marine Corps career as an enlisted Infantryman and Reconnaissance Marine. Deploying with BLT 1/4 on the 11th MEU in 1998, he participated in Operations Southern Watch (Kuwait/Iraq) and Safe Departure (Eritrea). After returning from this deployment, Corporal Jones was selected for the Marine Enlisted Commissioning Education Training Program (MECEP) and was accepted to Auburn University, where he was promoted to Sergeant. In addition to a full academic load, Sergeant Jones was heavily involved with training Midshipmen in the NROTC program to become Navy and Marine Corps officers, and after completing his Bachelor’s Degree in two years, was commissioned a Second Lieutenant. As a student at The Basic School on September 11th, 2001, Lieutenant Jones excelled in order to achieve his preferred Military Occupational Specialty and continued training in Quantico at the Infantry Officer Course. Upon graduating, Lieutenant Jones was assigned to 1st Battalion, 4th Marines at Camp Pendleton. Within three months of reporting as a Platoon Commander, he was selected to lead a security platoon to deploy to Kuwait in November 2002, guarding the 1st Marine Division and I MEF Headquarters as the division began to deploy for Operation Iraqi Freedom. Shortly before the operations in Iraq began, Lieutenant Jones and the security platoon was reunited with 1/4 and they were an integral part of the ground combat element. Following this deployment, Lieutenant Jones was assigned as the Executive Officer of B Company, and deployed again to Iraq where the battalion was distributed throughout Anbar Province, and Lieutenant Jones was involved in the Battle of Najaf, the elections in Karbala, and the second Battle of Fallujah. Returning to the United States again, Lieutenant Jones was ordered to Recruiting Station Montgomery, Alabama, as the Executive Officer. Upon successfully completing the tour on Recruiting duty, Captain Jones volunteered to return to Iraq as a Company Commander with 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marines, returning to Anbar Province yet again. Shortly following the completion of this deployment, Captain Jones was assigned as in Individual Augment to the 6th UK Division, which became Regional Command South in Afghanistan. After 13 months, Captain Jones returned home to orders to be the Inspector Instructor for B Company, Anti-Terrorism Battalion in Amarillo, Texas, where he submitted retirement papers to complete his service. After his ~22 years of service to the Marine Corps, Andrew Jones started a new career as a project and program manager, gaining more experience and seniority in various positions up to his current role as a Senior Agile Program Manager working as a contractor to the Internal Revenue Service.