Marine Corps Achieves Recruiting Goal
by U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Ryanne Williams
November 30, 2023

This year, the Marine Corps achieved a goal that seemed to be an impossible feat.

While every branch of service faced difficulty in recruiting the necessary numbers, the Marines persevered, meeting their recruiting goal for fiscal year 2023 and distinguishing themselves above all others.

The driving force of meeting these goals are the Marine recruiters who worked diligently to achieve them. There were recruiters that went above and beyond their expected performance to ensure the Marine Corps ranks were filled with the next generation of Marines. Staff Sergeant Eduardo Mancilla Rangel, the Staff Non-Commissioned Officer in Charge at Recruiting Sub-Station Katy, Recruiting Station Houston, is one of them.

Staff Sgt. Rangel hails from Salinas, California. Growing up, he didn’t have immediate dreams of becoming a United States Marine. His inspiration to join was rooted in looking up to his older brother, who to join the Marine Corps to avoid the dangerous path of gang activity in his hometown, and ultimately became an FBI agent following his service. Staff Sgt. Rangel’s decision to join came two years after he finished high school and stemmed from realizing that he also wanted better direction in his life.

“I thought, if the Marine Corps can (make that change for) my brother, I wonder what it can do for me.”

He called a recruiter and soon shipped from Recruiting Station Sacramento to boot camp at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego. Upon completion of basic training and his primary Military Occupational Specialty school, he became a Postal Clerk. He built himself up as a leader and gained experience in the Marine Corps before deciding his career needed more progression.

“I knew that I had potential and I wanted to challenge myself in something different. I didn’t feel like I was progressing, and it was at that point that I actually looked into becoming a recruiter.”

His desire to volunteer for recruiting duty stemmed from seeing the importance of Marine recruiters and the impact they have on the Corps. The first interaction future Marines have with the Marine Corps is the recruiter. They are the epitome of hard work, dedication, and setting the ultimate example of leadership and commitment. These values are what Staff Sgt. Rangel emulates and looks for in his own potential prospects.

“The biggest quality that I look for in prospects is their word. Or in other words, their commitment. I believe that commitment is a good sign that the applicant can make it during boot camp and eventually in becoming a good Marine.”

All the work put into his duties is evident as he is recognized for his contributions to the recruiting efforts for fiscal year 2023 by sending over 100 poolees to boot camp. Poolee is a name given to individuals who commit themselves to becoming a Marine and participate in a program to prepare them for shipping to basic training. Staff Sgt. Rangel trained, mentored, and showed exceptional leadership to the poolees at RSS Katy, leading to their accomplishment in becoming Marines and the overall contribution to Marine Corps’ mission success.

Staff Sgt. Rangel and his team are an inspiration for all recruiters in the Corps’, who are already working hard to find the next generation of Marines in 2024. With recruiters like him, the Marine Corps will continue to fill its ranks with highly capable and readily prepared Marines from communities and cities across America.

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