#VeteranOfTheDay Marine Corps Veteran Jared Taylor

Today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is Marine Corps Veteran Jared Taylor. Jared served during the Iraq War.

Jared was born in November 1978 in New Mexico. He attended the Miami University of Ohio. When Jared became unsure of his future, he decided to join the Marine Corps to give back to his country.

Jared served with Charlie Company, 1^st Battalion, 25^th Marine Regiment, 4^th Marine Division. His deployment locations included Honduras, Kuwait, and Iraq.

In his Veteran’s History Project interview, Jared reminisces on his deployment in Fallujah, Iraq. In Fallujah, he interacted with Iraqi civilians on a daily basis in an effort to build a relationship with the city. Although Jared explains that some people reacted negatively towards the American troops, he claims to have had good relationships with most of the people. Spending most of his time with the people of Iraq showed him the challenges they faced and allowed him to grow empathetic towards them.

Jared describes his service as something that gave him a strong sense of purpose. He is still friends with the people he attended boot camp with and looks at the Marines he served with as more than family. Jared says that the people he was with while deployed are his brothers. He credits his service as the most rewarding job of his life and misses it very much.

Thank you for your service, Jared!

Nominate a Veteran for #VeteranOfTheDay

Do you want to light up the face of a special Veteran? Have you been wondering how to tell your Veteran they are special to you? You’re in luck! VA’s #VeteranOfTheDay social media feature is an opportunity to highlight your Veteran and his/her service.

It’s easy to nominate a Veteran. All it takes is an email to newmedia@va.gov with as much information as you can put together, along with some good photos. Visit our blog post about nominating to learn how to create the best submission.

Veterans History Project

This #VeteranOfTheDay profile was created with interviews submitted to the Veterans History Project. The project collects, preserves, and makes accessible the personal accounts of American war Veterans so that future generations may hear directly from Veterans and better understand the realities of war. Find out more at http://www.loc.gov/vets/.

Graphic By Gavin Fukawa: Gavin Fukawa is a Political Science and International Affairs Major with a Japanese and Environmental Science Minor at Wake Forest University.