CAMP GRAYLING, Mich. -- Lance Cpl. William Vasquez is a Sanford, North Carolina, native and Reserve Marine with Company F, 4th Tank Battalion, 4th Marine Division. Vasquez, a tank crew member, participated in exercise Winter Break 2018 on Camp Grayling, Michigan, Feb. 4-17, 2018. When he's not conducting Marine Corps training, Vasquez is a construction worker for Parkers Stockstill Construction in North Carolina.
“This cold weather training really benefits us because we're definitely not used to being in this type of environment,” said Vasquez. “This training is helping us get adjusted to the temperatures that we'll be going through in other training. It lets us know where we need to get better, where we are good at, and, with the equipment we're using right now, what we can possibly do to get better at training.”
Reserve Marines spend two weeks each year building their capabilities at an Annual Training exercise. This year, the Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, based tank company is taking advantage of Camp Grayling’s rugged training areas to test their offensive, defensive and maneuver capabilities in a cold weather environment.
The Reserve force regularly augments active duty operations across the globe. Last year, Fox Co., 4th Tank Bn., sent detachments to South Korea in support of the Korean Marine Exchange Program, Norway in support of the Personnel Temporary Augmentee Program, and Georgia in support of exercise Agile Spirit. For now, Vasquez is focused on getting the most out of his training at Winter Break 18. He knows the nation’s call to activate could come any day. When it does, he’ll be ready.
“This has been an experience I've never had before,” Vasquez said. “So, for myself, it helps me at least know what I'm going to be getting into in the future, say, if anything happens, I'll definitely know what to do.”