Benito Bernardo Diaz, Sr.

U.S. Marine Corps 1976 –

Benito Diaz was born in 1956 in Cuba, a nation filled with year-round sunshine, international tourists, and gorgeous beaches. Two years later, Fidel Castro’s regime took over the island and his world turned dark and dangerous. Memories of intimidation, oppression, inhumane abuse, and strict rationing of food and other daily necessities shaped his early childhood. His father joined the guerilla warfare against Castro, making him and his family a target for arrest, interrogation, and execution. Thanks to a network of loyal friends, his father was able to stay one step ahead of the communist militia until he escaped from the island. Permission for Benito, his mom, and his two sisters to leave Cuba finally came just before his sixth birthday. The short flight to freedom from Havana to Miami, Fla., is vividly etched in his mind and a few months later, the family moved to Puerto Rico where his father had close family.

Shortly after turning twenty, Benito decided it was time to give back to the country that had provided safe refuge for him and his family and told his father his plan to join the military. He contacted the local Marine Corps recruiter and a short six weeks later, he was on a flight to Atlanta, Ga., on his way to bootcamp at Parris Island, South Carolina.

Despite his poor English and being set back twice in bootcamp, his tenacity and determination earned the respect of his fellow recruits and most of his instructors. He found unique ways to learn more English, earned his sharpshooter badge, and was promoted to Private First Class upon graduation. He reported to Marine Wing Communications Squadron 28 (MWCS-28) at Cherry Point, North Carolina, where he was soon promoted to Lance Corporal. After Communications School and the Field Wireman Course at Camp Geiger, Fla., he was assigned to work for a staff sergeant who resented him. Instead of helping Benito, he assigned him demeaning and often dangerous jobs. Benito, however, kept quiet and carried on. He did not want to be disrespectful to a Marine Non-Commissioned Officer (NCO) and still felt a deep appreciation to the United States for accepting and saving him and his family. To escape the situation, he reenlisted for a choice of duty stations and accepted orders to Marine Barracks, Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico, and was promoted to Corporal. He had learned a valuable life lesson at Cherry Point: everyone is entitled to be treated equally with respect, dignity, and fairness. That lesson sticks with him to this day.

He arrived at Roosevelt Roads shortly before the December 1979 terrorist ambush on a Navy bus. Within minutes of the bombing, he was in full 782 Gear on the Red Alert Reactionary Force ready to defend the base. He was placed in charge of a twelve Marine unit sent to the former Ramey U.S. Air Force Base to protect vital communications equipment. He was also assigned a small detachment to protect a Merchant Marine ammunition ship docked at Camp Garcia, Vieques Island. Everything calmed down after two weeks, and they returned safely to Roosevelt Roads. He was promoted to Sergeant in 1981 and transferred to First Battalion, Ninth Marines, First Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, Calif., in 1982. There he faced an uphill battle against low morale, inferior performance, and a lack of motivation. His work ethic and hard-scrabble background helped him mold a top-notch platoon. At one point, they were on stand-by to board helicopters to Nicaragua; but a Presidential order canceled the operation at the last minute.

In 1983, he received a change of military operational specialty (MOS) from Field Wireman to A-6E Intruder Avionics Technician. Shortly thereafter, he reported to Marine Aviation Training Support Squadron 901 (MATSS-901) at Naval Air Station (NAS) Memphis in Millington, Tenn. He graduated in April 1984 with orders to NAS Oceana, Va., for additional training before arriving at Third Marine Aircraft Wing in El Toro, Calif. He was assigned to Marine All-Weather Attack Squadron VMA (AW) 121 then quickly transferred to VMA (AW)-242 due to the latter’s lack of Staff NCOs.

Five years later, he left for the Fourth Marine Aircraft Wing as a member of the Commanding General/Inspector General (CG/IG) Team. For four years he provided guidance, training, and support to seventeen Marine Reserve Units to ensure their combat readiness. His final orders returned him to Marine Aviation Training Support Group 90 (MATSG-90) onboard NAS Memphis where he was the senior Marine assigned to Avionics School parts three and four. He counseled students on everything from academics to military bearing.

Although he never saw combat, he always stood ready and willing to answer the call to duty – no matter what that call might be. For his service to our country, Gunnery Sergeant Diaz was awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal w/star, Meritorious Unit Commendation w/two stars, National Defense Service Medal, Sea Service Deployment Ribbon w/one star, Good Conduct Medal w/five bronze stars, five Rifle Expert Badges, Overseas Service Ribbon, five Letters of Appreciation, and two Meritorious Masts.