Veteran Inspired to Help Others

By Elizabeth Mendez

Daniel Marquez's mother, Dawn, was supportive when her underage son asked to enlist in the army, but during his deployment, any mention of Iraq in the news would trigger a worried call.

"My mom, who should be an NSA spy, figured out how to call the switchboard in Virginia who'd patch her to the consulate in Iraq, who would forward her call to my desk phone," said Marquez.

Marquez, now 29, has spent a third of his life in the military, traveling around the world to train and serve in Germany and Iraq.

In 2009, when Marquez was finally allowed to return home, he took a year off to relax and recover. Getting used to life took time. When asked about psychological after effects from the war, he replied, "If you've gone to Iraq, you have PTSD, there's just no way around it."

Now, Marquez is part of the Army Reserve. Every month, he takes a weekend to train people on "Warrior Tasks" designed to help soldiers survive in combat. He has accumulated two associate degrees related to military technology and one from De Anza College from which he transferred to Santa Clara.

Enlisting in the army, Marquez was trained to jump out of planes and was pushed to his limits. Transferred to the Fifth Infantry, he worked with both Humvees and Stryker armored fighting vehicles. Marquez wanted skills that were applicable to a career outside the military, so he retrained to a 33W-an electronic warfare maintenance, integration and systems operation specialist.

Marquez's spirits rose when he was sent for duty in Germany in 2005. After a year, Marquez was sent to his first Iraq deployment in Al-Faw, Saddam Hussein's palace in Baghdad.

After completing a year and transferring to Germany, Marquez returned to Iraq and was stationed in one of the largest U.S. military bases. Marquez helped relay and process information from unmanned air vehicles.

Marquez remembered the base was under fire around 670 times during this year. He was never injured on duty, but hurt the most during training.
"I have two slipped discs, two traumatic brain injuries, I got blown up once or twice," he said, nonchalantly.

Marquez has made an impact on the Santa Clara community through his involvement in this year's model United Nations, helping win three diplomacy awards from the Model United Nations of the Far West.

Through a course at Santa Clara last year, Marquez began volunteering at BUILD.org, a college-prep program for low-income high school students. Marquez gained a new perspective on social justice when he became friends with an undocumented immigrant. Marquez now has his sights set on law school. He primarily wants to help others through pro bono work.

"Almost my entire life I have been serving this country in its pursuits, now it is time to serve its people," said Marquez.

Contact Elizabeth Ambriz-Mendez at EAmbrizMendez@scu.edu or (408)554-4849.