In honor of Veterans Day, SKILLSET is proud to spotlight and honor several veterans from the armed forces. We have reviewed our archives to share a few inspiring stories, highlighting their remarkable transitions from soldiers to entrepreneurs.
Veterans Day Stories
Title: Anthony Marquez
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BRANCH: United States Marine Corps
OCCUPATIONAL SPECIALTY: 0311
CONTACT: XVIICarvings.com
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Anthony Marquez joined the Marine Corps in 2007, following in the footsteps of his uncle, Robert, and both grandfathers, who served in World War II. As an infantryman with the 1/5 (1st Platoon, Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines), then Cpl. Marquez was selected to become the IDD handler for the unit. IDD stands for “Improvised Explosive Detector Dog.” In March 2011, Anthony’s Battalion deployed to Sangin, Afghanistan, an experience he credits with drastically changing his life — one that inevitably shaped him into the man he is today.
“I was given the opportunity to come home when others weren’t. There were many times my ticket should have been punched but wasn’t,” says Marquez. In 2016, he had the idea to create a chainsaw carving of a battlefield cross for each family that lost a son during the 2011 Sangin deployment. “Seventeen Marines were killed and over 160 were wounded,” says Marquez. “I contacted a local man named Clayton Coss, who had been carving for 30 years. I told him what I wanted to do, and he offered to help. He not only helped me carve but allowed me to use his tools and garage,”says Marquez.
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Honoring Heroes
The first battlefield cross was presented to Teresa Greniger, mother of LCpl. Robert S. Greniger on the 5th anniversary of his death (July 12, 2016). “I was contacted by numerous people wanting a carving, which I thought would help to cover the costs for the 17 I planned to donate. The support came rolling in.
I have organizations that want to auction off carvings at their events or fly me out to work on-site. My next carving is for LCpl—Joe M. Jackson’s family. Jackson was the first KIA our Battalion had on our Sangin deployment. This carving will be one of the 17 I promised I’d create. It’s important to me to show the families of a fallen Marine or Soldier that their sacrifices will never be forgotten.
Image Credit: U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Anthony Marquez, a dog handler with 1st Platoon, Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, Regimental Combat Team 8, hands an Afghan girl a piece of candy during a vehicle checkpoint in Sangin, Afghanistan, June 17, 2011. The Marines conduct frequent patrols through the area to demonstrate their presence and interact with the community to identify ways to assist the local populace. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Nathan McCord/Released)
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Veteran Tattoo Shop Owner
Department Name: Combat Entrepreneur, Tony Stannard
Company Name: Trinity Art Collective
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Owners: Tony Stannard, Jake Kloos, and Kevin Patrick
Branch: United States Marine Corps
Occupational Specialty: 2nd Force Reconnaissance Marine
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Q: Tell us about your job in the Marine Corps before you became a business owner.
A: I went in on an open contract to Parris Island, and the MOS I got was Admin. Clerk! Not my cup of tea! It took some time, but I eventually made it over to the grunts as a 0331 Machine Gunner. I loved being a Machine Gunner, but I knew I wanted more. I wanted to become a Force Reconnaissance Marine. During my eight years in the Marine Corps, that was by far the best job I ever had.
After graduating, I spent two semesters in college before considering returning. At the time, private security contracting overseas was getting popular. My best friend told me to try out for it, so I did. I contracted for DynCorp, Triple Canopy, MVM, and Patriot Group. Contracting was the best of both worlds. I worked with guys from all special operations branches and didn’t have all the bullshit that inherently comes with being in the military.
Working for certain government agencies was an awesome experience, and I had plenty of job satisfaction. I remember first telling myself I would do two, maybe three years max. I ended up contracting for 13 years.
Outside Influences
Q: Which people in your life have influenced you the most?
A: If I had to list the most influential people in my life, it would have to start with my dad and mom. The sacrifices they made for my sister and me growing up taught me that you have to make sacrifices for the things you truly want in life. Next would have to be all the men who shaped me while I was in the Marines (too many to list). There are many people whom I admire who have also influenced me as a tattoo artist. Eventually, I will meet them and shake their hands. Shit, we might even have a drink and bullshit about life and tattooing.
Q: Favorite art style to tattoo?
A. My favorite would have to be something Asian inspired. I truly just love tattooing every style that I can do.
Q: Regarding cover-ups, which tattoos usually get the axe? Ex-girlfriend’s names? Tramp stamps?
A. Nothing is off the table. If you want it, I’ll do it. I educate all my clients on name tattoos. I don’t have a good track record of people staying together after I tattoo them, but if you’re interested, I’ll do it! (Laughs.) I don’t have a problem doing cover-ups, but the client usually has to be willing to compromise on things like design and the size of the tattoo. Nine times out of ten, the cover-up needs to be done in color.
Brotherhood
Q: How’d you get a cool Mafioso nickname like “Tony 4 Fingers”?
A: My nickname came from my time contracting in Iraq. To put it simply, I had a bad day. I was two days short of going home after contracting for six months. We had a meeting to take our client up to Baiji, Iraq. During 2004, that was a really shitty place to be. We stayed a little too long on site, and we received some incoming. I was lucky enough to have one land about two feet from me. Not a good day! I didn’t lose anything else but a finger. Lucky for me and everyone else in Iraq during that time, they had great surgeons at the CSH sites. My buddies called me “Tony 4 Fingers” afterwards, and it stuck.
Q: If you could go back in time to your 18th birthday and give yourself one piece of advice, what would it be?
A: That’s a hard one to answer, now having had two totally different careers. If it were advice on joining the Marines, it would be not to take any shit from anyone. I would tell myself not to fuck around — join Recon right away and do my 20 years and retire.
Celebrate Veterans Day
If you know a veteran who deserves to be featured on SKILLSET, please feel free to email us their story.
