Beaufort’s John and Cathy Stump, 62 and 64, joined the United States Marine Corps in 1981 and 1982, respectively, and attended Officer Candidate School at Quantico followed by assignment to Lejeune, where they met and married. Each entered the field of Motor Transport, serving first at Lejeune (where John deployed to Norway) and next in Okinawa with temporary duty in Korea, the Philippines, and Iwakuni, Japan.
Their next duty station was at Parris Island, where Cathy was a Recruit Company Commander, and at MCAS Beaufort, where John was in Marine Wing Support establishing airfields in remote locations, including for Desert Storm and in Norway.
They returned to Quantico, including an assignment for Cathy with Headquarters Marine Corps. Thereafter, they headed west to Pendleton for three years, where Cathy trained Marines for deployment and John managed Marine motor transport throughout the region. Their final tours were served at Parris Island, where Cathy provided Supply and Services and John worked the recruiting support for eight states.
They retired in 2004, John as a Major and Cathy as a Lieutenant Colonel. Cathy worked as a civil servant at Parris Island for an additional 14 years. They have been married for 38 years, and John is the Commandant of the Marine Corps League Yellow Footprints Detachment in Beaufort.
– Compiled by John Chubb, American Legion Post 9. For nominations, contact jechubb1@gmail.com.
