I googled the name of the guy who inspired me to become a Marine Scout Sniper, and found out he died in 2009, right back where I served with him.
David Mitchell Burns was a Scout Sniper and grad of one of the first classes at the Quantico SSIS. I met him on Diego Garcia while we were deployed with 3/3. I yhought S/S was about the coolest job in the Corps.i was a 0331 then.
I went to a great Squad Leaders School, "Small Unit Leadership Course (SULC) in Hawaii, and did another westPac. After that cruise They held a school and dave told me what to say at the interview and grased the way for me with the OIC.
Dave was a great guy, and a great instructor. he wanted me to be the Honor grad, and even though I was top shooter and was second in academics by only .3 points, the guy who outscored me repeatedly cheated on stalks, going outside the boundries and slipping back in. They knew somebody was doing it but couldn't catch him. the guy who was came from the OICs Company and lied and denied. Dave and the other instructors were adamant, but to no effect. The Honor Grad ditched the Plt and BLt just before deployent, and became the janitor at the K bay Chapel for the next year. No kidding!
Dave left us in 3/3 shortly after we went to the STA Plt, and did Embassy duty in Moscow and a couple other places, including Beruit.
He left the Corps years later, became a San fran PD officer, a UN policeman in Kosovo, and a variety of other jobs.
He died in hawaii in 2009, and is buried in the Punchbowl, only miles from where we served together and took Liberty in Wakiki.
I am so sorry I lost track of him all those years ago. he was a great guy, and a fine Scout Sniper (Instructor).
It breaks my heart to find out he died young, and I never got another chance to reconnect and tell him how much I appreciated his guidance and encouragement.
I have to make a trip back to Hawaii one day, and pay my belated respects.
RIP Dave. It's always sunny in the Punchbowl.
David Mitchell Burns was a Scout Sniper and grad of one of the first classes at the Quantico SSIS. I met him on Diego Garcia while we were deployed with 3/3. I yhought S/S was about the coolest job in the Corps.i was a 0331 then.
I went to a great Squad Leaders School, "Small Unit Leadership Course (SULC) in Hawaii, and did another westPac. After that cruise They held a school and dave told me what to say at the interview and grased the way for me with the OIC.
Dave was a great guy, and a great instructor. he wanted me to be the Honor grad, and even though I was top shooter and was second in academics by only .3 points, the guy who outscored me repeatedly cheated on stalks, going outside the boundries and slipping back in. They knew somebody was doing it but couldn't catch him. the guy who was came from the OICs Company and lied and denied. Dave and the other instructors were adamant, but to no effect. The Honor Grad ditched the Plt and BLt just before deployent, and became the janitor at the K bay Chapel for the next year. No kidding!
Dave left us in 3/3 shortly after we went to the STA Plt, and did Embassy duty in Moscow and a couple other places, including Beruit.
He left the Corps years later, became a San fran PD officer, a UN policeman in Kosovo, and a variety of other jobs.
He died in hawaii in 2009, and is buried in the Punchbowl, only miles from where we served together and took Liberty in Wakiki.
I am so sorry I lost track of him all those years ago. he was a great guy, and a fine Scout Sniper (Instructor).
It breaks my heart to find out he died young, and I never got another chance to reconnect and tell him how much I appreciated his guidance and encouragement.
I have to make a trip back to Hawaii one day, and pay my belated respects.
RIP Dave. It's always sunny in the Punchbowl.
