Sgt. Major James A. Lewis

Beloved husband, dad, grandpa, brother, and uncle Sgt. Maj. James A. Lewis left us this week.  He is a Vietnam Veteran who was proud that he "brought 12 men out to the field and he brought 12 men back." He is the king of war stories or what he called "No shit" stories.  

He was the best Marine. He was first in his class in Staff NCO Academy, he served as a DI, recruiter, a Drill Master for Drill Instructors, Scuba instructor, and the 1st Sgt for Recon in KBay. 

He married a local girl Jan when he was stationed in Kaneohe Bay and stayed married 41 years until his passing. 

He left behind 3 children, 8 grandsons, and 5 granddaughters. 

He did a lot of things in his 76 years, but there was nothing he did that was more important to him than his service to his country. He offered his life and he was dedicated to our Corps his entire life. Walking into the VFW and hearing the chorus of "Hey Sergeant Major!" And "How's it going Sergeant Major!" Was the highlight of his day. 

His dedication to our country's freedom compelled some of his children to join the Corps. His oldest son served in Desert Storm as a Corporal, a son served in Iraqi Freedom and retired as a Colonel, and his daughter served during 9-11 and was discharged as a Corporal. 

His sacrifice and core values that were passed down to his children are now being passed to his grandchildren and beyond. 

We will never forget his sea stories, the 7 Ps (Prior Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance), his still gruff drill instructor voice that civilians always wrongly interpreted as yelling, and his sayings like, "Some days you eat the bear, and some days the bear eats you." 
 
We will miss you and love you, daddy odie! 

Anything donated will help with burial expenses and support his heartbroken widow.