There’s so much content on the internet that goes viral for totally unjustifiable reasons. This video of a Marine bravely climbing to the top of a hill to honor his fellow brothers is deserving of all the views that it receives and will be the most inspiring thing you will see today.
There was a five-year reunion that was attended by 125 Marines and 350 family members that honored the Marines and families of 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines, which completed Afghanistan’s deadliest deployment in 2011. However, the ceremony was held at the top of a colossal hill at Camp Pendleton in southern California where there are crosses to memorialize the fallen comrades. The imposing mile-long climb to the top of the hill did not deter former Cpl. Josue Barron, even though it should have.
The retired Marine lost his leg and left eye during conflict in Sangin, Afghanistan when a fellow soldier stepped on a roadside bomb. Barron was one of 184 soldiers wounded over seven months, as well as 25 Marines killed in action. Fast forward to April 30, 2016, Barron wanted to pay his respects to those Marines who lost their lives, but he would have to trek over a steep hill to the top of a mountain.
“When I saw that steep hill, I doubted myself a little bit,” Barron told Marine Corps Times. And rightfully so because First Sergeant’s Hill rises far above the regimental headquarters at Camp Pendleton and even those with two perfectly good legs have trouble hiking to the top.
He started walking with his prosthetic leg, which reaches up to his hip, but starting having issues. “The leg wasn’t working the way I wanted it to work, so I just took it off and kind of crawled on my arms and one leg,” the gallant Marine said.
The physical exertion was so exhausting, but the thought of his brothers in arms who made the ultimate sacrifice only motivated him more. “After a while my body went numb, but I wanted to get up there,” he said. “I have friends up there, and there was no way I was coming back down without reaching them.”
“I had told myself I want to see those crosses, and it took me five years to get up there. I knew I had to get up there some way some how,” said Barron.
Barron made it to the top to pay tribute to his fallen brothers. The video has since gone viral and he hopes the video gives inspiration to former soldiers who are contemplating suicide.
The video captures encapsulates the perseverance and warrior-spirit of the Marine Corps and is sure to motivate, inspire and sadden.