Where we started:

USMCFamilies.com was created by Terry and Joyce Crowder who are the proud parents of a United States Marine.

Their son, Brad, graduated from high school mid-term in January, 2005. One week later he turned 18 and enlisted in the Marine Corps that same day. He didn’t leave for boot camp in San Diego until April because he couldn’t do the required two pull ups. From January until April, Brad worked out with the Marines at Fort Benjamin Harrison in Indianapolis. He showed his parents how determined he was to get to boot camp and realize his dreams. His dad even constructed a makeshift pull up bar from a closet rod and hung it from the garage ceiling. He placed a sign on the ceiling that Brad would look at as he strained to get his chin over that bar……”I Can Do, I Will Do, I Can Be, I Will Be, A United States Marine!!!”. Finally the day came when he could do those pull ups and he was sent to MCRD. The sign that served as an inspiration has a special place in the family album.

Brad became a Marine on July 15, 2005. Shortly after we sent him back to California for MCT, the thought of starting a website struck this proud new Marine Dad. He wanted to do something to show his pride in what his son had accomplished, and also wanted to do something to benefit other families of the military, but had a soft spot for Marines.

Together, Terry and Joyce have continued to update and add to the site. We’ve tried to promote the site as much as possible by displaying a white decal that reads USMCFamilies.com on our burgundy SUV, passing out business cards, and telling anyone and everyone who will listen to us ! The site has been up a little over a year and a half and we have had visits from as far away as England, China, Alaska, Australia, Japan, Lebanon, Norway, Korea, Columbia, Canada, Russia, New York, Pennsylvania, California, Sweden, North Carolina, Missouri,  Spain, The Netherlands, Ireland, Iraq and many more. 

As our son has now completed his first overseas tour in Iraq and attained the rank of Corporal while there, the website gives us the opportunity to highlight the accomplishments of not only our Marine son, but those sons and daughters of other Marine parents in our support group. We are after all, United As One, a huge Marine family!

How Far We've Come:

USMC (United States Military Combined) Families, LLC was officially formed in September, 2007 by Terry and Joyce Crowder and Steve and Amy Miller…two sets of very proud Marine parents.  They had a vision to support military members and their families regardless of their chosen branch of service.  In the few months since we’ve started on this new journey, our group has grown to include representatives from the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines! 

 USMC Families, LLC holds monthly support group meetings where we can share our anxieties of upcoming or current deployments or our joys of homecomings. We can cry if we need to and, quite often, we’re not crying alone.  Being military families, we share something special.  We somehow find the right words to comfort someone….or know when words aren’t necessary at all.  The friendships and family we have built are forever. 

Our signature event, the Support Our Troops Family Day, is held annually and is a day dedicated to our troops (past and present) and their families to say “Thank You” for a job well done.  Our event and organization are not politically motivated.  Your opinions on the war are of no concern to us.  We just believe that showing support for our military is the right thing to do.  Our tag line is “More Than A Magnet’.  It is easy to put a magnet on your car that says “Support Our Troops”…..how many of us really DO more than that?  We at USMC Families, LLC truly do more.  There is no greater feeling than to welcome home a Soldier or Marine at the airport or shake the hand of a Veteran and tell them “Thank You”.   

Our sons Cpl. Bradley W. Scriff and LCpl. Will Miller, are currently deployed to Iraq.  We are fortunate to have a group like ours to lean on for comfort during these next several months.  We will lead by example and when the time comes for others in our group to face the deployment of a loved one, we will be there for them and walk with them every step of the way.