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CAMP LEATHERNECK, Helmand province, Afghanistan (1/12/2012) –
Modern cinema often portrays human life in a manner that seems too
surreal, with large explosions and quick timelines that turn hours
into a matter of minutes. Sergeant Mamadee Toure recalled growing up
in Monrovia, Liberia, seemed like an over-dramatized movie in slow
motion, but it was a childhood that led him to what he is doing
today.
Sergeant Mamadee Toure, who hails from Atlanta, is a supply liaison
for units in 2nd Marine Division (Forward). Mamadee said if a piece
of equipment needs parts, that he is responsible for ordering and
tracking the items. Photo by USMC Sgt. Earnest J. Barnes, Jan. 12,
2012 |
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Toure, who now calls Atlanta home, is the maintenance management
chief for Headquarters Battalion (Forward). His experiences growing
up with war taught him one of the greatest lessons of his young
life.
Toure said he was approximately six years old when
civil war broke out in his country. He said seeing dead victims of
battle was common and came to dislike the reality that was his life.
“Have you seen the movie “Blood Diamond?” Some of the stuff that
happened in that movie is so raw -- the killing and the brutality. I
know it is acting, but that is how it really was,” said Toure as he
compared his childhood to a film. “Kids were drugged and forced to
fight. Child soldiers were everywhere. I cried through it because it
brought back so many memories.”
Toure explained one memory
from his childhood struck a chord in his heart and sent him a
mission to achieve one goal in life. |
“Being from Liberia and growing up with civil war in the
90s, (Marines) were over there fighting the rebels when I
was little, shooting back at the rebels,” he said of the
first time he saw U.S. Marines. “But (the Marines were) also
helping little kids on the side of the road, kids who had
been abandoned, or their parents were killed. They were
picking them up while they were still fighting.”
That
image of Marines helping the innocent and helpless stuck
with him throughout his childhood, and Toure said he wanted
nothing more than to be a Marine after he saw what they did.
When Toure was a teenager, he said one of his older
siblings moved to the United States and applied to have his
family moved to the states under a refugee status. Toure was
able to immigrate to America in late 2001 and was determined
to follow through with his dream. He added he was not able
to join the armed forces upon immediately entering the
United States because he did not have the proper
documentation.
“I couldn't do it straight out of
high school because I didn't have my ‘green card' yet, so I
went to college,” said the 2004 graduate of Lincoln College
of Technology in Norcross, Ga. “I was a supervisor for (a
satellite television provider) at the time, and I pretty
much decided to drop everything because this is something I
wanted to do. So I (joined the Corps) in 2006.”
Toure, who is now 28 years old, is on his third combat
deployment since he started his career. He said he only has
one goal when it comes to his job: to keep operational
readiness high.
As the maintenance management chief,
Toure is the link between individual battalions in the
fight, the supply sections, and the commodity sections that
manage ordnance, communications, motor transportation
drivers and mechanics. If a truck breaks and it needs a
part, the battalion needing the part will contact Toure, and
he reports, tracks, requests and ensures delivery of
whatever is ordered. A tedious job, but Toure is happy to do
it so the Marine at the battalions within 2nd Marine
Division (Forward) can stay focused on their missions.
“(His duties are) all mission critical. Without him,
without having that guy to reconcile and get those things
into the supply system, the corrective maintenance wouldn't
get done,” said Gunnery Sgt. Kenneth W. Hunter Jr., a Tampa,
Fla., native and the supply and logistics chief for
Headquarters Battalion (Fwd).
Hunter, who is Toure's
direct supervisor, added Toure is a vital part of supply. He
is able to get that information from the units and act as a
central hub for the battalions so they know where their
parts are at all times. They could make multiple phone calls
and likely not get an answer, but thanks to Toure, the work
is done for them, all because Toure tracks all ordered parts
and broken equipment daily.
“Working with Sergeant
Toure is very unique,” said Hunter as he chuckled. “Not only
does he have vast experience of being in a combat area, but
he is also serious about his job when it comes to it. He is
very passionate about his job and making sure the Marines
under him are trained, so when they get ready to go back (to
the states), they can still be in the fight.”
At the
end of the day, Toure said he wants to help people much like
the Marines he saw when he was just a boy, whether it's
helping them by ordering necessary parts to ensure vital
equipment remains operational or just serving as a friend at
the gym to workout with. After a hard life of war, the main
reason he said he is happy to continue serving as a U.S.
Marine is being able to impact someone else's life.
“Contributing and making a difference in somebody else's
life, it humbles you; it makes you a better person. It makes
you appreciate life and appreciate the little things.” he
explained.
By USMC Sgt. Earnest J. Barnes
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2012
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