Communities in close proximity to a major Marine—or other armed forces—base naturally give rise to military support groups within surrounding cities. Dana Point is one such city that takes on a supportive role for the Marines and sailors at Camp Pendleton in an enthusiastic and committed manner.
Having declared the 5th Marine Regiment at Camp Pendleton as the city’s adoptive battalion back in 2004, Dana Point has one of the longest running adoptive relationships with a neighboring group of service men and women in South Orange County and surrounding areas.
Dana Point is also home to one of the most effective and well-formed support groups in the state—The Dana Point 5th Marine Regiment Support Group.
The group was incorporated in 2008 becoming an official nonprofit organization with tax exempt status.
The mission of the 5th Marine Support Group was primarily to offer community support to members of the Headquarter Company but also to extend their reach to include all battalions. In addition to care package programs for deployed Marines and support for those they leave behind, help is also offered to families in emergency or distressed situations that often fall through the cracks of other services offered by military resources.
President Pete Hammer was one of the founding board members along with Terry Rifkin, director of Support and Outreach and City Manager Doug Chotkevys who serves as the organization’s secretary.
In addition to Rifkin, Hammer and Chotkevys, the group’s board of directors roster includes nine board members—Nancy Jenkins, Diane Harkey, Brud Le Tourneau, Hank Snyder, Alan Wickstrom and Bob DePew—all Dana Point residents.
This small but fiercely committed board has taken the group in a direction that often sees hundreds of residents volunteering to help out at events or with projects aimed at caring for deployed Marines, sailors and their families through the distribution of care packages, fundraising and even simply offering words of encouragement.
“We have grown into a very well organized group,” said Rifkin. “I think it’s a credit to the people of Dana Point and surrounding communities how well we function in support of our Marines and their families. We have developed an amazing group of volunteers. So much so, that I recently put out an email looking for people to help with a fundraising barbecue and got 17 replies within just a few hours.”
According to Rifkin, the group’s ever expanding volunteer list includes some military families, however, most who lend a hand are not related to a Marine. Rifkin sees this as testament to how eager the community is to show appreciation for those fighting for our country.
The support group has taken on many projects over the years, including helping to plan baby showers for expectant Marine wives, organizing self-defense classes taught by expert Marine Martial Artists for wives of deployed Marines, organizing holiday and other parties for Marine families, hosting “pamper parties” for the women while their husbands are gone and raising money to help young Marines with the $100 ticket price for the annual Marine Birthday Ball.
The group has also funded a monument dedicated to those who died in Operation Enduring Freedom in Iraq. The memorial stands in a park outside of the Lt. Capodanno Chapel in the San Mateo 5th Marine area of Camp Pendleton. They have also been setting aside money each year to accommodate funding a possible future tribute to the fallen 5th Marines of the war in Afghanistan, said Hammer.
“These are just a few small ways to show our support to our brave defenders,” said Hammer who when asked to describe his commitment to this organization, summed it up with one word, “immense.”
Hammer credits the start of his fierce commitment to the years between 1967 to 1971 when he was a Marine Corps Captain and radar intercept operator in the back seat of an F-4 Phantom supersonic fighter jet—used primarily for close air support of U.S. troops in Vietnam.
He says that everything the group does from golf tournaments and car washes to providing deployment snack bags and the upcoming screening of the a documentary about Marines in Afghanistan called Patrol Base Jaker, allow the group to provide support that he knows, first hand, is very much appreciated.
With Hammer at the helm, the organization has sent well over 2,000 care packages to Marines and Sailors in Iraq and Afghanistan as part of the group’s Operation Care and Comfort.
Recently a new project dubbed Operation Joining Forces has seen support group efforts focused at finding volunteers to “adopt” the families of Marines and sailors who have left for a year-long deployment in Afghanistan.
On July 28 the group made an early morning trip to Camp Pendleton to bid farewell to a group of about 65 men —members of Regimental Combat Team 5 (RCT-5) advanced party headed by Lt. Col. Pete Wilson—as they departed en route to Afghanistan.
(The 5th Marine Regiment are referred to as RCT-5 when they deploy.)
They gathered with the Marines and their families at about 4 a.m. offering support and goodie bags to tide them over on their trip.
Support Group directors Rifkin and Jenkins assembled the bags that contained juice, water, a cookie, granola bar, an apple and a note of encouragement from Hammer.
The Advanced Party left the base at about 6 a.m. on their way to March Airforce Base where they had a 12-hour wait before taking off for Afghanistan.
“The main body of the headquarters company—more than 300 Marines—departed from Camp Pendleton just last week and we were again there to bid our RCT-5 goodbye,” said Hammer. “Although send offs are some of the most fulfilling events we participate in, I do this for three reasons—our Marines, their families and all the great friends I meet as the president of the 5th Marine Support Group—all three are equally rewarding.”
Rewarding is a word that Rifkin also uses to describe her service to the group.
It was somewhat of a fluke that Rifkin said “yes” to a call for volunteers during a Monarch Beach Sunrise Rotary Club meeting when the idea for the organization first surfaced.
“Rotary wanted to do something for the military and I didn’t even know that the city had adopted a Marine Regiment. I had no idea what I was getting into,” said Rifkin. “I am better for the experience of being able to serve in this way. I am honored and humbled to be able to contribute to this family of Marines and their relatives who are making huge sacrifices for our country.”
Rifkin’s father served in World War II and would often utter the words “I served in WWII” despite suffering from dementia in his final days.
“These were some of his last words,” said Rifkin. “He considered his service one of his life’s greatest accomplishments. Before becoming involved with this organization I had no idea what he had been through, serving during a war. Now it all makes sense to me.”
While the Marines and sailors are away Operation Joining Forces will kick into high gear to care for the families left behind and the 5th Marine Regiment Support Group will again seek to add to its roster of volunteers.
“In addition to offering support we also hope to get the women (wives, sisters, mothers, etc.) of the recently deployed Marines engaged with volunteer efforts (Operation Care and Comfort) while their Marines are away. The isolation can feel unbearable and they can feel alone and depressed. For family members to be involved, empowers them to become engaged in a way to support their loved ones while they are away,” said Rifkin “Aside from the generosity of the community, this is another way our volunteer roster keeps growing and growing.”
“I feel that being a part of this group is the least I can do for the freedoms the Marines provide us by going into harms way to defend our country. I also enjoy helping the families left behind during deployment. It makes me happy to make even a small difference in the lives of our Marines and their families,” said board member Alan Wickstrom. “It’s amazing how much this group has grown over the last few years but we are always looking for volunteers—even if you have limited time to spare. I should also mention; it’s a lot of fun.”
Those who would like to volunteer should contact Terry Rifkin at 949.412.3475 or send an email terry@terryrifkin.com.
For more information about the Dana Point 5th Marine Support Group, log on to www.danapoint5thmarines.com.
Movie Screening to Raise Funds for Marine Support Group
The Dana Point 5th Marine Regiment Support Group is holding a pre-release showing of documentary Patrol Base Jaker at the Ocean Institute on August 24 at 5:30 p.m. The film, produced by Dave Scantling, follows the deployment of the 1st Battalion, 5th Marines during their tour of the Nawa District of Afghanistan in 2009 and 2010. Patrol Base Jaker takes viewers to the front lines, where U.S. Marines stand at the wicked intersection of war, radical Islam, international drug trafficking, reconstruction and the counter-insurgency strategies designed to reestablish the rule of law in Afghanistan.
The movie will be followed by remarks from the filmmaker and Col. Robert Castellvi, who deployed to Afghanistan for Operation Enduring Freedom and served as the chief of staff for the 1st Marine Division Forward at Camp Leatherneck.
The Dana Point showing is being presented in honor of Lance Cpl. Donald Hogan of San Clemente who was killed in action on August 26, 2009 by a roadside bomb. His actions to save the lives of his fellow 1st Battalion, 5th Marines earned him the Navy Cross.
Tickets for the event are $35 and include an appetizer plate, no-host cocktail hour and the movie screening. Proceeds will support the families of the 5th Marines who are away in Afghanistan on a yearlong deployment that started this month. Seating is limited. Go to www.DanaPoint5thMarines.com to purchase tickets. For more information, call 949.378.7984.
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