Marine Corps Recruit depot San Diego -- As Pvt. Christopher J. Bell, Platoon 1062, Delta Company, 1st Recruit Training Battalion, worked his way through the Crucible Confidence Course, he knew he had come a long way since the beginning of recruit training.
Twenty-year-old Bell, a Springfield, Ore., native, was noted by his drill instructors as the most overall improved recruit in his platoon.
According to Sgt. Tyler J. Tellez, senior drill instructor, Bell received the most improved recruit because he has shown improvements mentally and physically.
“Bell has improved his overall physical fitness. He started out doing 15 pull-ups, and now he’s doing 25, which is more than the Marine Corps requires,” said 28-year-old Tellez, a Yuma, Ariz., native. “Bell’s best improvements are his aggression and confidence.”
Bell grew up in Springfield, but moved to Gilbert, Ariz., where he graduated from Campo Verde High School. Once he graduated, Bell attended college for a short while but realized it wasn’t for him. It wasn’t until he saw what the Marine Corps had to offer, that he found his calling.
“My father was a major in the Marine Corps, and he strongly encouraged that I look into the opportunities the Corps offers,” said Bell. “He enjoyed being a Marine and always talked highly of it, so I decided to give it a shot.”
Before making his final decision to enlist, Bell said his father told him it was going to be very challenging and was going to test him physically and mentally.
He found recruit training to be very stressful and a lot tougher than he thought. He wasn’t as fast as the rest and did not know how to react under pressure.
“When I first got him, he was timid and very nervous. He was slow and had no aggression,” said Tellez. “I mentored him, and over time he started to show more confidence. Now he is a complete night and day difference.”
Bell is scheduled to graduate recruit training on Aug. 8, and then will attend Marine Combat Training at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif. Upon completion of MCT, he will continue his schooling for his military occupational specialty for motor transportation.
“I feel like a new man. I’m confident and ready to take on any challenge or obstacle,” said Bell. “I’m looking forward to carrying the title as a United States Marine as my father once did.”