TEMECULA, Calif.  Each year, members of the Southwest Riverside County Marine Corps League, Detachment 1057 participate in a unique gathering with the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post in Temecula, CA.

The two-day annual "Drill Instructors Call and Charity Golf Event, hosted by the Temecula Valley Veterans of Foreign Wars, Post 4089 is a special event partnered with the West Coast Drill Instructors Association, attracting current and former drill instructors who served at Marine Corps Recruit Depots in San Diego or Parris Island. 

“If you’ve ever served as a drill instructor, this is the place to be,” said Marine Corps League member Larock Benford.  Also a retired Marine Corps Sergeant Major, Benford added, “there’s nothing better than getting together with Marines you’ve served with, especially if you were involved with making Marines.”

Members of the West Coast Drill Instructors Association and Marine Corps League Detachment 1057 planned for months to host the DI Call, based on tracking the latest updates in local and state guidelines of proper social distancing due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. 

This event also served as an annual reunion for many of these Marines.  Many of the former drill instructors worked together while serving at the recruit depot. For a moment, comradery and Esprit de Corps transport these former drill instructors back to their time at the recruit depot.

The competitors demonstrated their skills in manual of arms, the “Rusty Hat” cadence calling contest, storytelling, along with judging various drill instructor displays of yesteryear.  The event also hosted a historical display of a World War Two-era Willy’s Jeep, along with a number of fundraising activities supported by a team golf competition, along with auctions and raffles of special items.

“There are a lot of retired Marines living here in Temecula and many of them served as drill instructors during their professional careers,” said retired Master Sergeant John Hernandez.  “The members of Veterans of Foreign Wars and Marine Corps League, are deeply involved with the community."  Hernandez added, "at the VFW and Marine Corps League, we support several successful outreach events throughout the year, but the DI Call is our finest event; it’s a true reunion amongst Marines who are still leaders in the community.”

                         (-USMC-)