U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Alec Burris, from Wasilla, Alaska, is with the 3rd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion (3d LAR) – Official Site, out of MAGTF Training Command/Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center at Twentynine Palms, Calif.

Elements of the unit are at the National Training Center/Fort Irwin to supplement the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment as ‘Guest Blackhorse’ as part of their deployment cycle. Cpl. Burris is an O313, Light Armored Reconnaissance Marine, and is the vehicle commander of a LAV-25, directing the driver, gunner, and up to four Marines that dismount as scouts. He is not the first in his family to serve; his grandfather was also a Marine in Vietnam.

“I joined the Marine Corps for adventure at first. What I found within the last three years is that it’s had a deeper purpose for me, finding my ‘why’ in life. The Marine Corps has really helped me figure out what I’m doing and why I’m doing it.”