180927-M-TT434-0010
MARINE CORPS RECRUIT DEPOT SAN DIEGO, CALIF. -- Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego hosted a Multi-Cultural day to celebrate the contributions of the different cultures in the United States and the military at the MCRD Command Museum, September 27, 2018.
Marines and civilians set up booths and exhibits to display the numerous cultures of people who are serving in the military.
“Some key parts of the event are to educate, promote resources, and unify our diverse workforce here at MCRD,” said Yesenia Rodriguez, equal employment opportunity specialist, MCRD San Diego. “We want everyone to come together, all the diverse individuals to come together as one.”
The exhibits on display highlighted different groups, such as the African-American, Hispanic, Asian-American and Pacific Islander, National American Indian and Caribbean American heritages.
“All of our representatives and resources are coming from the community as well as our work forces,” said Rodriguez. “They are volunteers who come out here and support the event, celebrate, and share their backgrounds so people can learn about different cultures.”
There were speakers who talked about their experiences with different cultures.
“My first taste of diversity was in the seventh grade when I went to an inner city school in downtown Louisville,” said Colonel Jim G. Gruny, Chief of Staff, MCRD San Diego and the Western Recruiting Region. “For the first time in my life I was the minority, I’m the guy who is a little uncomfortable about things, and I’ll tell you, when you are a seventh grader it is kind of a scary experience.”
The main purpose of the event was to promote and educate the work forces on MCRD San Diego on diversity and celebrate the backgrounds of each culture.
“The last time we had something like this was back in 2013,” said Rodriguez. “We are looking to try to continue on and have a multicultural event every year.”