U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Tucker Sparks, a vehicle commander

U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Tucker Sparks, a vehicle commander with Apache Company, 3rd Light Armored Reconnaissance, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), and Mount Vernon, Ohio native, poses for a portrait aboard USS New Orleans, Jan. 25, 2021.
“I am a vehicle commander for light armored reconnaissance. We go before the other units and do reconnaissance and report to higher what we find. Then, the Marines who follow us move forward and eliminate the threat.”
The 31st MEU, the Marine Corps’ only continuously forward-deployed MEU, provides a flexible and lethal force ready to perform a wide range of military operations as the premier crisis response force in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Alexandria Nowell)