Staff Sgt. Casey Strickler, a receiving drill instructor, supervises the arrival of the newest recruits of Mike Company, 3rd Recruit Training Battalion, on July 8, 2013, on Parris Island, S.C. Strickler, 23, from Harrisonburg, Va., issued the first orders the recruits received after arriving for training. The first day is one of many they will spend learning what it takes to earn the title of United States Marine. Mike Company is scheduled to graduate Oct. 6, 2013. Parris Island has been the site of Marine Corps recruit training since Nov. 1, 1915. Today, approximately 20,000 recruits come to Parris Island annually for the chance to become United States Marines by enduring 13 weeks of rigorous, transformative training. Parris Island is home to entry-level enlisted training for 50 percent of males and 100 percent for females in the Marine Corps. (Photo by Cpl. Caitlin Brink)
