Chief Drill Instructor Staff Sgt. Edward P. Underwood,

Chief Drill Instructor Staff Sgt. Edward P. Underwood, Hotel Company, 2nd Recruit Training Battalion, mentors recruits during the Crucible July 21, 2016, on Parris Island, S.C. Underwood, 28, is from Asheboro, N.C. Hotel Company is scheduled to graduate July 29, 2016. Parris Island has been the site of Marine Corps recruit training since Nov. 1, 1915. Today, approximately 19,000 recruits come to Parris Island annually for the chance to become United States Marines by enduring 12 weeks of rigorous, transformative training. Parris Island is home to entry-level enlisted training for 49 percent of male recruits and 100 percent of female recruits in the Marine Corps. (Photo by Lance Cpl. Aaron Bolser)