Motivation to Serve Transcript

“Motivation to Serve” story transcript

Dave Kurshat: I wanna talk about Joe Sharpe. Joe is a single father and a veteran. He’s a student here at Oakland University and he actually goes into my business writing class. I wanted to talk about him specifically, because I know there was more to his story than what could be put on a resume. I knew there was something intriguing, but powerful.

See, Joe grew up in White Lake, Michigan. There, he was surrounded by nature and the beauty that nature brings; there were beautiful shimmering lakes, there were woods he would adventure in, [the] greenest nature could provide. As he grew older, he remembers being in a writing class, though [sic!]; it was then that a video emerged of 9/11 and, at first, he thought someone accidentally flew a plane into a tower, but then the second plane hit; class let out early, but the memory never left.

At age 20 years-old [sic!], he felt like is was his duty to enlist. He remembers waiting in a scheduled meeting with the army recruiters, but for some reason they haven’t [sic!] showed up yet. As he waited, someone from the marines came by actually and said, “Hey, can I help you?”

So, Joe, he describes his times in the Marines as probably the most fun he’s ever had. But while he was there, he traveled the world and did a lot of intense training. Not only that, but he actually learned a new sense of humanity, he took in the culture around through the poverty even, and sometime he literally lived in shacks, like all the people around him. Not only was there diversity in the culture around him, but, even among the Marines, there were people from all walks of life.

Not only that, though, ask Joe about his motivation, his motivation to serve to do good, to get up every morning. He immediately said that it was his 6-year-old son. Joe described his son; he described the way his heart was so big; he described the way his son could enter a room and the mood could completely brighten. Even more than Joe chose to fight for his country [sic!], Joe wants to fight for his son.

So, not only did Joe experience diversity, not only Joe is diverse as a single father and veteran, he experienced diversity around, he trained with people in the Philippines [sic!]; there were people in the Marine court from different races, different cultures; there were people who were well off and there were even people who were actually been living [sic!] on the streets.

But you know what? Each one of them fought for a common goal, whether a veteran, a single parent, whether you have a different skin color or [are] disabled, each diverse person can offer so much. With Joe’s determination for the country, for the future and for his son, Joe can do the good that just Joe can do.

Thank you.