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United States Marine Corps - Matt Neely - Page 1

Growing up in Oregon, I did the usual "farm kid" things of 4-H, FFA, raising and showing beef cattle, riding horses, and moving irrigation pipe in my Dad's alfalfa fields. I attended Jefferson High School, where I was the District Champion in wrestling for two years. I also played football and baseball.

 I graduated in 1978 and immediately left for the Marine Corps on 12 July bound for San Diego, California. After about 3 months in Boot Camp, and a meritorious promotion to E-2, I was off to Basic Mechanics school in Camp Lejune, North Carolina. My stay there was brief, just three months. After graduating 1st in my class and another Meritorious Promotion to E-3, I was off to an advanced mechanics school at Aberdeen Proving Grounds, an Army base in Aberdeen Maryland.

 My first duty station was in 29 Palms California, arriving there about April 1979. I was assigned to "Base Motor Transport", where my duties included simple mechanics up to driving and maintaining a 10-ton commercial wrecker. In November of 1979 a position came open in Koneohe Bay Hawaii, and with the flip of a coin I was off to spend the next 2 1/2 years in Hawaii. While in Hawaii I had some different duties, being assigned to a desk job overseeing and working with a vehicle Maintenance Management System for a large mechanics and body shop. The last 6 months or so at Hawaii I ended up going out on board ship, visiting quite a few different ports of call, including Perth Australia, Subic Bay in the Philippines, Malaysia, Korea, Hong Kong, and a very brief stop in Japan to resupply.

 End of active duty came on July 12, 1982 After a few months at home in Oregon with Mom, I left for Midland Texas where Dad was living. Employment over the next two years consisted of Equipment operator, Supervisor, Lineman and Cable TV splicer, involved in both the telephone and cable TV industries. I ended up working there until a lay off in November of the same year. I then went to Houston for about a month, and then started working my way north, next to Conroe Texas, and then to Cadott, Wisconsin with some friends that were from there. This move took place in April 1983. From there it was off to Green City, Missouri in July. Several more moves were made with the company that took me to Missouri Shakopee and Owatonna, Minnesota and finally to Des Moines, Iowa. From here it was back down south to Hobbs, New Mexico in July 1984. Upon moving to Hobbs in 1984 I was employed by an oil field Pipe inspection company, starting out as a general hand and working my way up to an operator in about 8 months. I left this job to join TCI Cablevision in Jan.1990, and worked there for 7 years, then deciding to go back to the oilfield pipe inspection business as a Supervisor for a considerable increase in pay over the Cable company, in January 1996. At present I am still employed by this company, Called Tuboscope Vetco International.

 I have two great kids: Bradley Matthew Neely, born Dec 4, 1988 and Brittany Anne Neely, born July 3, 1990. I have the children with me every two weeks after my divorce in Dec, 1996, but am in the process of obtaining permanent custody.