This is the fourth in a series of articles highlighting Marines working aboard Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany.
Lance Cpl. Mixon Fisher, 19, grew up in San Antonio, Texas. He was attached to the thought of earning military ranks very early. No recruiter had to persuade him.
“I enlisted at the age of 18; three weeks after high school graduation,” Mixon said. “I went to boot camp on June 25 (2018) and went for further training.”
Fisher arrived at Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany, his first duty station, on March 26, 2019. He serves as an administrative clerk for the company office at Marine Corps Logistics Command.
“As a kid, I was always interested in the military,” Fisher said. “There is something about the military and brotherhood.”
The lance corporal has a background in welding. That is his military occupational specialty. He was led to the Marine Corps while looking at which branch to choose.
“I felt the Marine Corps was the one out there making a difference,” Fisher said. “The Marines’ very mission is focused on getting things done. I spent time with the Army; I felt myself more drawn to the Marine Corps side than the Army side.”
He does not do welding work for MARCORLOGCOM, but is able to get some time in fostering this passion two days out of the week alongside a few civilians.
“I had no issues or complaints about being stationed here after that,” Fisher said.
Fisher lives in the MCLB Albany barracks, where he spends his free time reading and checking in on loved ones. He has been involved in a few volunteer opportunities as well.
This is in addition to the time he spends working toward perfecting his passion.
“(The interest in welding) started out as wanting to learn something new,” he said. “I like the ability to make something new.”
Fisher’s welding skills, through which he has been able to craft works of art for friends and co-workers, have developed enough for him to receive honors at various stock shows.
He said he is hoping to get certification to do more work welding professionally.
“It is not much of a job; I enjoy doing it,” he said. “I normally won’t charge for a welding job.”
Fisher’s position in MARCORLOGCOM puts him near the epicenter of Marine Corps supply resources. He said he is working with good people on a critical mission.
“Everything we do here impacts the Marine Corps at large,” he said.
Fisher said the role he has is normally a sergeant billet, so he takes on the character of someone in that rank. It was an overwhelming task at first, but he eventually gained his footing.
He said he finds he is mostly treated like a sergeant as long as he upkeeps the attributes of a sergeant.
“There is a much bigger picture than just me,” the lance corporal said. “Right now, I am helping out and filling in a billet where I am needed.”
Meanwhile, Fisher is taking classes to ensure he is more well-rounded by the time he goes to his next unit.
“I am taking the opportunity to work on myself,” he said.
Getting certified, Fisher said, aligns with a goal to set himself up for success. His education is to serve as a key to make him as promotable as possible.
For now, the Marine Corps will remain a part of his life.
“I do plan to re-enlist,” Fisher said. “At the end of that, I will see where it goes.”
Fisher’s time so far at MCLB Albany and MARCORLOGCOM has given him exposure to many leaders from whom to gain knowledge and wisdom. There is much experience to lean on.
“This is a very top-heavy base,” he said. “As a junior Marine, it is daunting, but you find a rhythm to it.”
“Everyone I know gets along with each other (at MARCORLOGCOM),” the lance corporal added. “I have a lot of mentors; they talk to me more like an adult than a kid.”
Fisher said MARCORLOGCOM personnel are significant in that the Corps would come to a standstill if the command were to cease to exist.
“The Marine Corps would have to make do with what we have on hand,” he said. “I didn’t know that coming into it. Seeing it, I 100 percent believe it.”
The workings of the military largely remain within base perimeters. All the public typically sees when they look at a Marine Corps vehicle is the vehicle itself, not the deeper picture of the resources which come into play to build and maintain it.
In a nutshell, those details are at the heart of MARCORLOGCOM’s mission.
“There is a whole system that has to take place,” Fisher said. “We break it down to the hull, repair it to a whole new vehicle and send it back.”
Fisher advises future Marines to look out for their comrades, and be prepared for the unexpected. He had to get used to a different comfort level while developing a brotherhood during his time in boot camp.
“Don’t go into the Marine Corps expecting it to be one way,” he said. “Roll with the punches and look out for the guys on the left and right.”
Fisher said he is expecting to get some welding experience and deployments under his belt after his time in Albany. Meanwhile, he is content where he is.
“I enjoy being out here,” he said. “There are opportunities out there, you just have to look for them.”