Correspondent photo / Nancilynn Gatta Richard Stewart of Leavittsburg stands next to his United States Marine Corps basic training graduation photo at his State Farm office in Niles.

NILES — Richard Stewart’s original career choice veered into a military stint.

“I always wanted to be a firefighter so I went to Texas A&M’s fire academy,” he said.

Becoming a firefighter was not as easy as he imagined.

“I became an EMT (Emergency Medical Technician) and tried to get into the fire department and found it is really competitive,” he said.

Stewart wanted to serve his country and thought that would be a faster path to his goal.

“I think I was 20 and I thought, ‘You know what, I will join the Marines and that will help me get into the fire department after I do my four years,'” Stewart said.

Previously, he explored different branches of the service.

“I had always been a large guy. I visited all of the branches and when I visited the Marine Corps, I think I weighed 310 pounds,” Stewart said.

The Marine recruiter did not look highly on Stewart’s enlistment and Stewart took it as a challenge.

“He looked at me and laughed and he said, ‘You’re too big.’ I said, ‘Alright, how much weight do I have to lose for you to let me in?’ He said, ‘You lose 100 pounds and come back.'”

Since the Marines are known as the few, the proud, the brave, Stewart said he wanted to go to the hardest branch and prove himself.

“I lost 100 pounds in less than a year and I went back and said I’m ready to join,” Stewart said.

He took the ASVAB (Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery) to determine which military job he should have.

“I scored high enough that I could go to any of the jobs. I picked security forces. They were part of the unit that guards embassies,” Stewart said.

A friend of his encouraged him to select that job because he had served in the same capacity, wearing their dress blue uniforms, and spoke highly of it.

“When I got into boot camp, I found out it was not exactly what he said. It is a different MOS (Military Occupational Specialty). I was a grunt,” he said.

The Dallas native ended up on the West Coast.

“I did basic training in San Diego,” Stewart said.

He did not do any sightseeing while he was training. After basic training, he went to further training.

“I went to Infantry School at Twenty Nine Palms in California (The Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center). Because I was in the security forces, they then sent me to Virginia to go to security forces school,” Stewart said. He was trained in infantry, closed quarters and hostage situations, clearing perimeters and setting up secure areas if military intelligence thinks there would be an imminent attack.

Part of his training seemed unnecessary, but Stewart said there was a purpose for doing it.

“The Marines are known for playing games. They would say, ‘Move those sandbags over there.’ It is 10 feet away and then they would say, ‘No, no, no, we want them back here.’ It was all to get you trained to follow orders no matter what. If it comes to an emergency, just be automatic,” Stewart said.

With his specialized training ,he was ready for activation stateside or overseas at any moment.

“We were a quick response team. I was with the Fleet Anti-Terrorism Security Team.”

This preparation was put into practice a year into his enlistment.

“My whole platoon was activated to secure the medical ship outside of New York City after 9/11. We were there to make sure nothing else happened,” he said.

He spent the rest of his time in the military in Virginia.

After leaving the service, Stewart did reach his goal of becoming a firefighter, but it did not live up to his expectations.

“I had a dream of being a firefighter and fighting fires. I did not want to be a medic,” he said.

The younger firemen were EMTs and did not fight fires when he joined in Virginia. Most fire departments required paramedic licenses for firefighters when he left the Marines.

After two years, he left the fire department in Virginia and decided to go into another type of service. He worked in animal welfare in Virginia and later in Idaho as a Director of Animal Services.

The Leavittsburg resident left the position and switched to insurance.

“I ran animal shelters. It was super sad. I wanted to do something happier. There was definitely burnout,” Stewart said.

He met his wife who was originally from this area.

“I met my wife at a Medieval Faire and we found out we were both living in Virginia and we had mutual friends,” he said.

As a United States Marine, Stewart served his country and kept it safe. Today, as owner of the State Farm Insurance Agency in Niles, he does a similar thing for his clients. Still, he does carry the knowledge he acquired from the military into his present position.

“I learned leadership skills, responsibility and making quick decisions. Indecision does not help anything,” he said.

Richard Stewart

AGE: 46

RESIDENCE: Leavittsburg

SERVICE BRANCH: United States Marine Corps

MILITARY HONORS: Good Conduct, National Defense Service Medal and Expert Rifle and Pistol Award

OCCUPATION: Insurance agent, owner of State Farm Insurance in Niles

FAMILY: Wife, Lindsey; one daughter; and one son