Excerpts from article published in Orange County Register on 4/9/2015:

VALOR IS WHAT THESE MARINES ARE ALL ABOUT

Gunnery Sergeant Brian Jacklin still remembers being vastly outnumbered and surrounded by the enemy in a small village in the volatile Helmand Province of western Afghanistan.  He and his team of nine special operations Marines had taken heavy fire for hours from outside a compound.  His captain and a sergeant had been hit and were bleeding out.  Jacklin saw blowing out the wall as the only way to evacuate his wounded comrades and get his team to a landing zone and an arriving copter.  “I asked the guys, ‘Does anyone have a problem with blowing out the wall to get out of here?’” Jacklin recalled.  “They all said, ‘I’m in, just do it.’  There was no hesitation when I gave the order.  I told them, ‘If you get hit on your way out just keep going and we’ll figure it out afterward.’”  After the wounded and his team were evacuated, Jacklin stayed behind providing intelligence and personal fire to the assisting SEAL Team 3 and local Afghan forces.

Jacklin, a critical skills operator with 1st Marine Special Operations Battalion, was awarded the Navy Cross – the nation’s second-highest award for valor.  “With his decisive actions, bold initiative and complete dedication to duty, Jacklin reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service,” his citation reads.  He was decorated by MAJGEN Joseph Osterman, Commander of the Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command, during a ceremony on April 9, 2015, at Camp Pendleton.  Jacklin received his medal for heroic actions during a 48-hour standoff with the enemy while he was part of a team conducting village stability operations in Afghanistan’s volatile Upper Gereshk Valley in June 2012.

During the ceremony, five of Jacklin’s team members, all critical skill operators, also were honored with the Bronze Star with combat “V” device for their role in the battle.  “These six extraordinary Marines are being recognized for their gallantry and valor,” Osterman said.  “It always takes a team to make it work.  This epitomizes the team concept and what these Marines are all about.”  While Jacklin emphasized that much of what happened that day is standard operating procedure for many Marines, Osterman characterized the event as unique.  The team was vastly outnumbered and the firepower against them was great.  Through their work together, the team became a lethal force.  “There has not been a prouder experience in my military career than June 14 and 15 of 2012; not because of anything I did but because of what I saw done by others,” Jacklin said.  “There is no way to express the magnitude of heroism and destruction that is possible when men of extraordinary skill and tenacity lay everything on the line for each other.”

Jacklin’s mother, Susan, watched her only child receive the honor.  The Hacienda Heights woman wasn’t surprised by her son’s dedication and the bond he has with fellow Marines.  “These men have always been his focus,” she said through tears of pride.  “This is an extremely proud moment and it includes all the sacrifice I’ve seen him have.  It was a concentrated effort by everyone.  I’m just so proud he could have such an impact on so many people.”  Susan Jacklin said her son had always been interested in the military while growing up.  He eventually decided the Marines were his calling because he admired their code of ethics.  It all came together when he lived with his grandmother in Corona and went to Centennial High School.  He was on the wrestling team there and his coach always made his wrestlers “earn their place on the mat.”  “To me that’s when he finally found his niche,” Susan Jacklin said.  “Earning his place on the mat, must have struck a chord with him.”  It was also there where he formed an early band of brothers that still remains strong as four of his wrestling buddies from Corona were there to watch.  When they heard the story about what he did, they weren’t surprised.  “When we wrestled, we were taught to fight and win,” said one of his fellow wrestlers.  “That was always instilled into each of us.”  “Being a Marine was always his dream,” said another wrestler, “He’s just a good, solid guy.”