BILL LAWLER 1:57

Hi, I’m Bill Lawler and I’m from Narragansett, Rhode Island, right down the street. You know, back in 1957, when I was there, there were four Silent Drill Platoons. Guard Company had just become Ceremonial Guard Company, and there were four ceremonial guard platoons. Each platoon had a Silent Drill. The training for the Silent Drill Platoon was much different than now. We trained by MCOs who trained the previous year, and we trained up at Camp David.

The security up there was, it was remote, it was out, when the president was there, there were Marines and secret service just saturated the perimeter of Camp David. There were no fences. And you would stand guard duty. We also went with President Eisenhower, when he left Washington, Marines always went with him.

You look back on your career and everything that’s happened to me—I had a successful business career and been involved in a lot of things—but when I think of highlights, I think about the Marine barracks and the Friday night parade, walking across center walk with the Marine Corps hymn playing, passing in review with the reviewing officer. That’s a thrill that you never forget.

The confidence I gained in myself—I had gone a year to college and left college. I had been an athletic scholarship, didn’t study very hard and was wandering a little bit when I went into the Marine Corps. I had gotten to the Marine Corps, got to 8th and I, and by the time I got out of the Marine Corps, my life had been shaped better. I was a different guy.

The Marine Corps teaches you, and therefore gives you the confidence that people that are around you are gonna perform to the manner that you expect and they expect.

The Marine Corps gets you in a point where you knew what you had to do and you weren’t gonna let that guy down or that guy down. ’Cause they weren’t gonna let you down. You just do it. And you could see that happening. It’s not hard to watch on TV and see that happening on the battlefields right now.

Marines are doing the same thing they’ve always done.