A Veteran’s Day Tribute

And a happy birthday to the Marine Corps

OPINION–The day before Veterans Day this year is another holiday, less known to the public but celebrated religiously by those in the Marine Corps. That day, November 10, is the Marine Corps birthday.

Photo by Iiona Virgin / Unsplash / Creative Commons

In some places the Marine Corps birthday is celebrated with a traditional ball and a cake-cutting ceremony. The cake-cutting itself is done with an officer’s sword. But over the years, the decades, the centuries, Marines are not always in places where cakes and balls are possible. If you Google “Marine Corps Birthday,” you will find stories of men celebrating this birthday on ships, in foxholes, in snow, in almost every condition imaginable.

I was never a Marine, but I first learned about this birthday from one of America’s most distinguished Marines.

On Nov. 10, 1979, I was a college student serving as an intern for Georgia Sen. Sam Nunn in Washington, D.C. Nunn was on the Armed Services Committee, and one of his staff members was Arnold Punaro, who advised him on military affairs.

Senators get office space based on seniority. In those days, Sen. Nunn was not the towering figure he ultimately became. He was a junior member with crowded offices. Those tight quarters sometimes made work and privacy a challenge. But it was great for me, a lowly intern. It meant I worked side by side with Arnold and other senior staffers. That fall of 1979 was probably the most intense period of education of my life because of my daily contact with Sen. Nunn, Arnold Punaro, and the other senior staffers who — by necessity — did their jobs within earshot.

Being a poor intern meant I was always on the prowl for fun and free stuff to do. I also wanted to see a bit of the real “insider’s” Washington. So I often worked late with the hope that one of the senior staffers, or on a rare occasion the senator himself, would ask me to accompany him to a dinner, a reception, or other event common in Washington but not usually accessible to interns.

Access to MinistryWatch content is free. However, we hope you will support our work with your prayers and financial gifts. To make a donation, click here.

One evening, Arnold asked if I would like to go with him to a birthday party. I said, “Sure, whose party?” He said, “You’ll see. Grab your jacket. We’ve got to go.”

I followed Arnold to the basement and we walked through the tunnel that leads to the Capitol building. We eventually made our way to one of the Capitol’s gorgeous old caucus rooms. There was a huge sheet cake sitting on a table. Marine generals and colonels were everywhere. It was the birthday of the United States Marine Corps.

Though Arnold was dressed in a business suit, they all called him “Major.” Even the generals, I was surprised to discover, showed a certain deference to him. I assumed it was because his boss was a member of the Armed Services Committee. But that was only one reason for their show of respect.

Arnold, one of the officers told me that night, had served three tours in Vietnam as a young Marine and had been wounded more than once. They tried to ship him home, I was told, but Arnold apparently fought the military bureaucracy as hard as he did the enemy, and he somehow got his wish to stay in Vietnam.

Arnold had continued to serve even after coming home. He was still in the Reserves on that evening in 1979, and that’s why they all called him “Major.” Arnold himself never spoke to me of Vietnam, but over the course of the evening, more than one general came up to me to say something like this: “Son, it must be a real privilege to work for someone like Arnold.” I said, “Yes, sir, it is,” but I was mostly thinking to myself, “I had no idea.”

I had almost completely forgotten about that experience until a November 10 evening many years later, in the early 2000s. I was listening to National Public Radio, and they interviewed a retired Marine general about his most memorable Marine Corps birthday, which happened to be in a foxhole in Korea. It was at that moment that I remembered my first and only Marine Corps birthday party. I googled Arnold’s name and learned he was a major general in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve and a senior vice president with SAIC, a major defense contractor. It said his “current reserve assignment is Deputy Commanding General, Marine Corps Combat Development Command (Mobilization). From 1997 to 2000 he served as the Commanding General of the 4th Marine Division.”

I called SAIC and eventually got Arnold’s email address. He wrote back a day later, telling me that the bio was a bit dated. He was indeed still at SAIC, but he had retired from the Corps after 35 years. His son, though, was now a young officer in the Marines who had recently returned from a tour in Iraq.

That night, after my children were tucked safely in their beds, I thought about Arnold, his son serving in the Corps, my dad who served in Korea, and all veterans. Fast forward to 2025, and that number now includes my son and daughter-in-law, veterans of the U.S. Air Force, and another son who is now in the Coast Guard Reserve. Because I never served in the military myself, and because I am grateful for their service, I try to take a moment each Veterans Day to remember their service and sacrifice. That remembrance this year will include a reflection on the Marine Corps motto, Semper Fideles. Always faithful. It’s a good motto for us all.

Editor’s Note: Warren Cole Smith originally wrote this Veteran’s Day tribute in 2010 for WORLD Magazine. Arnold Punaro is now the president of The Punaro Group, a Washington, D.C., defense strategy consulting firm.

For donors looking to support ministries who serve active duty military and veterans, MinistryWatch suggests Christian Military Fellowship. Cru Military and Navigators Military also serve military families.

TO OUR READERS: The mission of MinistryWatch is to help Christian donors become more faithful stewards of the resources God has entrusted to them. Do you know of a story that will help us fulfill our mission, or do you want to give us feedback about this or any other story? If so, please email us at [email protected].