Scott Barbado, a Gulf War veteran, never had any intentions of becoming a Marine. As a kid he loved to play Special Forces with his best friend. He remembers his childhood as he laughs, “he shot me in the nose with his BB gun!” They would scout the area with the guns in hand, “running around the woods looking for enemies to defeat.” Six years later these childhood games would become an adult reality when he was recruited by the United States Marines.
After High School, Scott enrolled at the University of Florida. “I didn’t know I wanted to do anything like [the Marines] until there was a recruiter that came to the college. I ran 3 miles under 18 minutes and completed a 12 mile hike, or hump, as they call it, with a 50 pound pack on my back. I dusted the ROTC guys who went to school for it.” He finished first out of 30 other men, making him an obvious choice for recruiting. “I joined for money for college,” but after completing the physical test he was highly attracted to “the thrill of the rush you feel from being with somebody else,” pertaining to being among the other Marines. He was recruited into a reserve unit that expected him to report for duty every other weekend and two weeks out of the year.
“I went to boot camp for sixteen weeks. It was basic training.” This put him at the rank of lance corporal. After completing boot camp, he went to specialty school where he learned about intelligence operations. “I felt like I was doing something awesome, for something bigger than me.” He also went through jump school, which involved jumping out of planes, sniper school and survivor school. “I loved that stuff,” he says, reflecting back on all of the training he received.
“When I reached my junior year in college, I was eligible for Officer Candidate School.” There, he became a leader. “I learned how to guide troops, deal with diversity and relay to troops. [They] have to believe in you.” Trust is necessary when someone is claiming that it is a safe decision to go out onto a warfront.
August 2nd, 1990 Kuwait was invaded by Iraq, beginning the Gulf War. President George H.W. Bush sent American troops to Saudi Arabia. Scott Barbado’s unit was activated and he was deployed to Iraq. “We jumped into Kuwait.” When asked about the war he said, “It’s like sports, only people are trying to kill you.” He explained, “Its team work. I was in a unit with 13 other men.” Their job was to protect the units that were fighting in Desert Storm.
“We monitored our troop movements by satellites, and remote control airplanes that were huge so we could see everything. We guided ground forces and told them everything we saw.” Barbado also went out onto the warfront with his unit to physically scope the area. “Our duty was to relay back to command what the enemy’s positions were, how many people they had, weapons they had and areas they occupied.” Undetected, they would “photograph, evaluate; basically determine how strong they [enemy] were and what their positions were.” After they figured out the area, troops would attack the next day. A Special Forces Marine’s duty was to protect the rest of the troops. He stayed in Saudi Arabia for 2 ½ months before coming back to America.
After serving his country in the Gulf War, he resigned his commission. His attitude remains, “once a marine, always a marine.”
He now has the opportunity to dust off his veteran title and go back to protecting his country. Although he hasn’t made a definite decision his unit may be heading over to the Middle East to provide his services in helping stabilize Iraq. National Guard Special Forces are looking for Marines with past combat experience to train others. Black water security would provide protection to companies in the Middle East. By keeping a watchful eye, they could guard Americans from terrorists. “We need to protect Americans and Internationals from the terrorists. They feel that we are a threat. They don’t want our western values forced on them.”
Scott Barbado has a great deal of pride in being a Marine. He feels that he provided a “blanket of freedom,” during the Gulf War, and if he decides to go over to Iraq he will do the same again. “I served our country,” and he will continue to do so if he is needed.
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