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Mark Mancini is forty-one and has been in the Army as a First
Sergeant for over twenty-two years.
Mark is currently stationed in Fort Bliss, Texas. He is
responsible for 179 soldiers and their families. Mark Andrew Mancini was born
in Philadelphia to Philamena Mancini on June 18,
1965. Mark has been married to Mary since 1989 and
has two beautiful daughters Valynica (16) and
Marina (12). He loves spending all his time with his family and loves running,
reading and he lives and breathes Dallas Cowboy Football. He began his Military career in May, 1984 at
the age of 18 during the Invasion of Grenada. Mark received basic training at the home of
the Military Police Corp - Fort McClellan Alabama. Mark wanted to be a Marine, but he wasn’t guaranteed
he could become a Military Policeman, so he joined the Army. The Military changed Mark’s life for the
better; he was an absolute handful for his mother. So, she sent him to a group home. Mark has been stationed in many different
places, but his favorite was Germany.
He attended Saint Anthony of Padua Elementary School, Lansdale Catholic High
school
and graduated with the class of 1983; he is currently enrolled in Maryland
University Fort Bliss Campus. He
didn’t like school very much, but he could stand it for awhile. Mark, unfortunately, wasn’t a very good
student and was often distracted by daydreams and hopes of having a normal,
structured family. He managed to get
by with a C average, but he now has a 4.0 GPA. His goal is to graduate on the Deans list. In his youth, he liked to hang out with his
friends, play sports and prove people wrong. In his prewar experience, he had always
dreamed of being in the Army. He got
married on June 16, 1989 and has two daughters. He met his spouse when he was
stationed at Fort
Hood Texas when his wife was visiting her sister.
Originally he
wanted to be a Marine, but that didn’t happen for him. They couldn’t guarantee that he would be a military
policeman, so he joined
the Army. He was eighteen when he
joined. The Grenada war had started before he joined. When he first entered, he had mixed
feelings about his decision. He thought it was a good decision, and he was
excited, nervous, and proud at the same time. He was known as the sponge,
because he was told all these stories and he just gobbled them up and
absorbed them into his mind. He missed
his moms’ food, even though the food in the Army was tolerable, he just
craved homemade food once in awhile.
He received his
training at the home of the Military Police Corp Fort McClellan, Alabama. He
was trained to be a Military Policeman, which was exactly what he wanted. He has been in many wars including the Iraq war going on right now. Here are some of the other wars: Operations
Urgent Fury, Golden Pheasant, Just Case 1989-1990, Desert Shield-Desert
Storm, Task Force Falcon, Iraq Freedom I, and Iraq Freedom II. On his free days,
he loved working out at the gym, going girl hunting, and sight seeing. His
commanders were tough, but often funny at times, Mark like them very much. Mark wasn’t very good at following the
rules, even though the rules were liberal.
He has many friends but his best friend was Darren
Stevens. If there was no internet he
would be lost without being able to email his best buddy. Mark was in charge
of 180 men in his unit. Mark was
frightened by the thought that he was in pitch black night sky, knowing that
the enemy was there. In their city Mark’s platoon was responsible for several city blocks of the
buildings so the enemy could not get past. He was especially good with handling poor
leaders. He was worried he would die when
his vehicle was struck by debris, fire, and smoke that entered his vehicle
and infused into his body. His unit was 401st Military Police
Company. On the night of December 20th he lost a close friend,
Scott Roth, every year he prays for Scott’s friends and family.
His sister Jennifer has three kids Gianni, Vincent, and
Dominic; he tries to visit them as much as he can. They still keep in touch
over the internet with his stories and well-being. His mother, Philamena,
known as Phyllis, has been in touch also. He has been waiting to see his
mother to have dinners, parties, and much more. His friend Darren is also in
the Army. Mark and Darren always hope
that they will see each other during the fighting, but they don’t usually.
One time Mark came across the family at Kuwait, they were very appreciative for his work, and they
took tons of pictures and loved him for his job. His highest rank was the First Sergeant,
which he is now. He is very grateful
for his position, he is very skilled with his work that is why he is where he
is today. He has had so much time away from war he visited amusement parks
such as Disney Land, Six Flags, Sea World, and Universal Studios. When he
went home to see his family people lined the streets for his return, they had
a parade, feasts, and ceremonies.
He has received
many medals and citations for his very impressive work in the military. Mark was stationed in many places such as:
1. C Company, 795th MP Battalion Fort McClellan, Alabama for basic
training and AIT (MP School) May-Oct 1984, 511th MP Company,
Fort Dix New Jersey Oct 1984-Jan 1986 (Machine Gunner) and many more. His favorite station was Germany. He went
everywhere including Italy, Spain, England, Amsterdam, Holland, Paris, Macedonia, Bulgaria, and Hungary. He has had much
experience since he has been in the Army, but he is hoping he will soon
settle down and be with his wife and kids.
He likes the Army and he still wants to fight a little bit longer. He has served an honorable twenty-two years.
He is now a First Sergeant, and is
very successful with his work.
Mark and his family when he just came home from Iraq.
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