On this episode of Cigars and Sea Stories, Bennett and Mike sit down with Jeff Loeb, Marine combat veteran of Khe Sanh, Vietnem. In the Marine Corps, Jeff had a dual MOS: artillery fire direction controller and interpreter, both of which he did in Viet Nam in 1968 and 1969, serving with Headquarters 1/11 (Khe Sanh, Cua Viet, Hill 29) and Bravo 1/11 (Charlie-2, Con Thien, Hill 55, and the “Riviera,” south of Marble Mountain. In addition to these duties, Jeff also was a FA forward observer and radio operator assigned to 2/1 while on “the Riviera” and at Hill 55. After service, jeff held a variety of occupations; a truck-driver, furniture mover, bartender and waiter, radio reporter, carpenter, farmer, construction worker, professional photographer, assistant city manager, house painter, and raiser/protector of dogs, cats, horses, birds, and many other animals. &nbsp;Jeff finished his PhD in English from the University of Kansas. He has taught literature and writing for thirty years at UK, Johnson County Community College, and at The Pembroke Hill School; a prep-school in Kansas City, Missouri.Jeff has published over forty academic articles and forewords to books, primarily on the African American literature of the Viet Nam War, in addition to three portions of a memoir-in-progress, all published in War, Literature, and the Arts: “Epiphany in Memphis”, “Brisance” and, just this month, “Gathering the Seasons” (http://wlajournal.com/wlaarchive/28/loeb.pdf), based on his service in Viet Nam and the aftermath. In addition, he has written two novels, that are unpublished at this point. Jeff embodies the Marine Corps spirit. He’s a brother to generations of warriors spanning from the battlefields of Vietnam to Afghanistan, collecting priceless sea stories along the way.   Sponsored by Veteranslist.us - get 50% off a featured membership by using discount code CIGARSANDSEA Spartan Media - Veteran owned and operated We are a proud member of Heroes Media Group Heroes Media Group; a broadcasting platform dedicated to providing a voice for our community heroes and those who support them. The Group is dedicated to providing education, entertainment and empowerment to: Active Duty, Reserve, Veteran, Retired, Military, Firefighters, First Responders, Law Enforcement, Educators, Medical Professionals, and Clergy. Their mission; To be the voice for all Community Heroes by bridging the gap between hero, citizen and the communities they protect, educate, and empower.

156: Jeff Loeb, Marine Combat Veteran of Khe Sanh, Vietnem

On this episode of Cigars and Sea Stories, Mike and Bennett are sharing sea stories from their time in the school of infantry. Bennett went to SOI east out on Camp Geiger in Lejeune. This was early 90s era when the school house was the next stop for all new Marines fresh out of recruit training. There are a few sea stories in this episode that start with, “we knew that sh!t would get us in trouble, but only if we got caught.” Those are the type of stories we like around here. Bennett and his buddies traveling out of bounds in a rented car. Barely making it to formation after a long weekend of debauchery. Mike spent his infantry training time out in Pendleton at SOI west. Taking the shuttle every weekend into to old town San Diego for a romp around the city finally winding up at the good night inn to sleep it off then do it all over again the next day. He bought a motorcycle while still in student status...dumb ass. Listen in to hear what the punishment was. Subscribe, rate and review the show now wherever podcasts are listened to.    Share your sea stories with us via Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/cigarsandseastories/ &nbsp; Sponsored by Veteranslist.us - get 50% off a featured membership by using discount code CIGARSANDSEA Spartan Media - Veteran owned and operated &nbsp; We are a proud member of Heroes Media Group Heroes Media Group; a broadcasting platform dedicated to providing a voice for our community heroes and those who support them. The Group is dedicated to providing education, entertainment and empowerment to: Active Duty, Reserve, Veteran, Retired, Military, Firefighters, First Responders, Law Enforcement, Educators, Medical Professionals, and Clergy. Their mission; To be the voice for all Community Heroes by bridging the gap between hero, citizen and the communities they protect, educate, and empower.

157: School of Infantry

On this episode of Cigars and Sea Stories, Mike is chatting with founder of Atlas Defense, Marc Holley. Atlas Defense is the materialization of Marc's vision to create a personal protection coaching service that commits to the development of confidence through competence in every client. Holley synthesized his years of experience in the military and security industry into something more applicable and relevant to the modern civilian world.  Marc's spent 8 years of service in the United States Marine Corps, transitioning into corporate risk management. He joined the United States Marine Corps Reserve in 2008 as a Military Police Officer and later was assigned the additional military occupational specialty of Combat Marksmanship Coach. He deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in 2011 to jointly train the Afghan National Police in Uruzgan Province alongside the Australian Federal Police. In that 8 month deployment, he was meritoriously promoted to Corporal and assisted in training over 700 Afghan National Police officers. Shortly after his return home, Marc took part in Southern Accord, another joint training mission in South Africa with the South African National Defense Force. In that short 4 week training evolution, Marc again assisted in training a foreign military on personal firearms, crew served machine guns, tactics, and non-lethal munitions. It was in those experiences that Marc began noticing some commonalities in students of all nationalities, backgrounds, age, race, even orientation. It was this simple fact that made him realize that professional personal protection training should be accessible to everyone. After returning home from Afghanistan in 2011, Marc began working in corporate security and eventually was promoted to the position of Global Watch Officer for Thomson Reuters' Americas Security Team. His duties there consisted primarily of travel security planning, crisis management, and employee security in North and South America as part of a small remote team. Major events that he assisted in planning and responding to included the Boston Marathon bombing, the civil unrest surrounding the Confederation and World Cup in Brazil, and a litany of other events that activated Thomson Reuters' Crisis Management team. Throughout these experiences, Marc took keen notice of the most efficient and concise methods in the training, risk management, and corporate security environment. Instead of taking all of the bad learning experiences as simply negative energy, Holley recognized the opportunity behind every failure or inefficiency he witnessed as an employee or Marine. On his last job as a private security contractor in Afghanistan in 2015, Marc finally committed to his vision and wrote his business and training plans for Atlas Defense. Returning to the United States in December of 2015 and starting Atlas Defense in 2016 was challenging but continues to be the strongest factor driving continuous self-improvement within Holleyand Atlas Defense. With Atlas Defense's operations in full swing now, they have active and interstate clients in Progressive Firearms Training, Situational Awareness, Permit to Carry, and remain engaged a number of other volunteer activities like Boys to Men Club and working with veterans clubs at local community colleges. Marc created Atlas Defense with an open architecture to catalyze a truly mobile business that can deliver its products anywhere. Using the advantage of being mobile, Holleydecided to offer his classes as a luxury product. Doing this ensures that not only he is fairly compensated for his time, but also drives home how seriously Atlas Defense expects clients to take this training. 2017 is expected to be another year of building and growth for Atlas Defense. Starting mid-January, Holley will be participating in the EPIC program at the Minneapolis Bunker Labs chapter. Atlas Defense is looking forward to growing their network, capitalize on previous successes, learn new...

158: Founder of Atlas Defense, Marc Holley

On this episode of Cigars and Sea Stories, Mike and Bennett are talking about the worst part of combat...kids. Children have no idea why Dad is leaving. They don’t know how long you’ll be gone and some, unfortunately, grow up not knowing the parent who went downrange and never returned. Being a parent and serving in the military can be insanely stressful. Deploying to a combat zone has a slue of risks, each accepted by the Marine who voluntarily joined the fight. The fight isn’t difficult to digest, or justify, but it takes a lot of time away from family.   Sponsored by Veteranslist.us - get 50% off a featured membership by using discount code CIGARSANDSEA Spartan Media - Veteran owned and operated &nbsp; We are a proud member of Heroes Media Group Heroes Media Group; a broadcasting platform dedicated to providing a voice for our community heroes and those who support them. The Group is dedicated to providing education, entertainment and empowerment to: Active Duty, Reserve, Veteran, Retired, Military, Firefighters, First Responders, Law Enforcement, Educators, Medical Professionals, and Clergy. Their mission; To be the voice for all Community Heroes by bridging the gap between hero, citizen and the communities they protect, educate, and empower. &nbsp;

159: The Worst Part About Combat...Kids

During this introduction tutorial you will learn about the "5 Paragraph Business Plan" based on the U.S. military's operations order.&nbsp;

5 Paragraph Business Plan Introduction

On this episode of Cigars and Sea Stories Mike shares his talk “You Were Created To Be Victorious” a keynote address, as performed at the Entrepreneurship Center of Craven County grand opening and launch. Mike was recently asked to do the keynote by, friend and fellow Marine, Dan Spangler. Dan has been on a few early episodes of Cigars and Sea Stories and the guys ares eager to have him back. Dan is a great guy and quite the character. This one time at Skybar in Atlanta we were riding this crazy elevator just hammered drunk.... anways. He’s an excellent problem solver and businessman. Dan proved this earlier in the summer when he marched into a meeting with the New Bern town leadership and clearly stated he could get the center open if the government would just stay out of it. Well, he made good on his word. The entire team at the Entrepreneurship Center of Craven County has done an amazing job in coming together to unveil a truly awesome space. Members enjoy luxed out accommodations with street views from leather sofas while working on highspeed wifi. Swing through there the next time you’re trying to relax at the beach. The grand opening event was hopping. It was standing room only. Great food, good music, solid networking and positive conversation. It was a great evening. Mike closed out the event with a talk about his friend and fallen compatriot. Sam was a true warrior and a valued member of his team. This talk is about fight, passion, a burning desire, a calling to take the path less travelled. Enjoy this talk and share. Add VALUE to the world.      Are you starting a business of your own? Start with a business plan that grows with your organization -  5 Paragraph Business Plan is available NOW on Amazon! &nbsp; Sponsored by Veteranslist.us - get 50% off a featured membership by using discount code CIGARSANDSEA Spartan Media - Veteran owned and operated We are a proud member of Heroes Media Group Heroes Media Group; a broadcasting platform dedicated to providing a voice for our community heroes and those who support them. The Group is dedicated to providing education, entertainment and empowerment to: Active Duty, Reserve, Veteran, Retired, Military, Firefighters, First Responders, Law Enforcement, Educators, Medical Professionals, and Clergy. Their mission; To be the voice for all Community Heroes by bridging the gap between hero, citizen and the communities they protect, educate, and empower.