Tommy Tuberville: “for many of our heroes, the desire to serve began at an early age. That is the case of LCpl Thomas Rivers, Jr., of…”

“for many of our heroes, the desire to serve began at an early age. That is the case of LCpl Thomas Rivers, Jr., of Hoover, AL. His parents and Thomas knew as a child that he wanted to be a marine, his lifelong dream. This desire only grew throughout his life, and he was motivated in everything that he did by this thought of becoming a marine. He struggled, at first, in high school until a military recruiter told him he would need a high school diploma to enlist. Low grades were never a problem after that conversation. This was evidenced in an English essay he wrote entitled ``Why I Want to Go Into the Marines.'' In the essay, he wrote in part: I don't think I would be afraid of combat and would be proud to fight for my country. He went on to say: I believe that joining the Marines would be a great experience for me because it will teach me to rely on God to make it through. Thomas joined the Marines as soon as he graduated from Briarwood Christian School in 2007. After completing training at Camp Lejeune, he deployed to Iraq and then to Afghanistan. His faith never wavered, despite the intense conditions of combat he was in almost daily. He and one of his friends, one night, began a Bible study while deployed, leaning on passages of the Bible for comfort. Corporal Rivers was killed by an IED explosion at the age of 22. His mother Charon spoke about how she never really got to know the fine young man she raised as he grew to be an adult.…”