A native of Northern California, Eric Frank had wanted to join the military since childhood. In fact, he remembers where he was when knew he was destined to serve: fifth-grade history class. The date was September 11, 2001.
In Frank’s words, “9/11 lit a fire in me … and it never left.” He thought, “I want to go fight back.” Frank was determined to enlist in the Marines directly out of high school, which he finished in Cincinnati after his family relocated from the West Coast. His family, though, was less convinced, and they encouraged Frank to hold off on military service. He tried community college in Ohio but left after a semester to work as a mechanic, which he did for almost eight years. At that point, Frank joined the Marine Corps and was based in Camp Lejeune, N.C., where he trained as an infantry mortarman.
“I met a lot of cool people from all different walks of life,” Frank said about his time in the Marines. As for enlisting later in life? “Part of me is glad I went in a little later; I had more maturity,” he said.
Frank and his wife now live in Woodbridge, Va. He’s a busy guy, balancing a full-time job at Marine Corps Base Quantico’s on-site auto repair center, service in the Marine Corps Reserves and associate degree coursework in mechanical engineering at NOVA. Once Frank earns his degree — likely in Fall 2025 — he plans to transfer to George Mason University to finish out his bachelor’s. His dream is to pursue automotive development and perhaps even own his own shop one day.
Of his jam-packed schedule, Frank admits that “it’s a lot to balance [school with work], but I’m really glad I’m here.”