NFM loan is pleased to honor Corporal Jason Walters, USMC, as the NFM greeting for August 2022.
Walters was raised by his father, an Army veteran in the 101st Airborne Division during the Vietnam War. His father’s gentle strength inspired him to join the military and he enlisted in the US Marine Corps in 1994.
Walters was first assigned to Company B at Marine Barracks in Washington, DC, colloquially known as the “8th and I”. The oldest active post in the Marines, it includes the Corps’ ceremonial units, including the US Marine Band and US Marine Drum and Bugle Corps. As a member of Company B, Walters participated in escorting dignitaries to the White House, marched in parades, and officiated funerals at Arlington National Cemetery. Although Walters witnessed numerous military funerals during his service, each was solemn. “You can’t help but live in the gravity of the sacrifices that have been made and that’s why it’s been such an honor to serve at Marine Barracks,” he said. “We took this very personally and represented her and the Marine Corps at the highest level.”
Walters then joined Company A at Marine Barracks and trained to become part of the Silent Drill Platoon. For four and a half months, Walters practiced 14 hours each day in preparation to become one of 24 Elite Silent Drill members. After passing his training, he participated in drill demonstrations at sporting and other public events across the country and around the world. In 1998, Walters left the Marines.
After leaving the military, Walters used his GI Bill to earn his bachelor’s degree from Radford University, which he completed in 2002. In 2016 he faltered: he was unemployed and homeless. “I remember laying in the back of the car at night thinking about the day I wasn’t there, the promises I made to myself and what I would do and what I wouldn’t do and how I would do it would never get out of the fight,” he recalled. Walters was…
