Marines facing tougher questions over recruiting

ALGONQUIN, Ill. – On a visit to a school in this Chicago suburb, Marine Staff Sgt. Jody Van Doorenmaalen asked a sophomore what popped into his parents’ heads when they thought about him joining the Marines.

“The only thing they think (is) I’m going to go to war and die,” 16-year-old Nick Ambroziak replied.

The exchange illustrates the difficulty these days for recruiters as they visit high schools, community colleges and shopping malls trying to sell the Marine Corps to young people while the country is at war in Iraq.

Earlier this month, the Marine Corps announced it had fallen short of its recruiting goal in January for the first time in nearly a decade. While the Marines say they remain on track to meet their target for the year, they acknowledge their task is harder because of the war and its mounting death toll from roadside bombings, helicopter crashes and suicide attacks.

“I’d say it has made it more challenging on a number of fronts,” said Capt. Timothy O’Rourke of Marine Recruiting Station Chicago.

Among the biggest obstacles today between recruiters like Van Doorenmaalen and recruits are parents. When the country wasn’t at war, parents often stayed in the background while their sons or daughters decided whether to enlist, but today they pepper recruiters with questions and concerns.

“Recruiters are spending a lot of time going to parents’ houses making sure they clearly understand the responsibilities their son or daughter will face as a Marine,” O’Rourke said.

Recruiters also are butting up against research that shows young people today are more tied to their parents than young people in years past.