Hampton native Col. Scalise retires after 30 years with Marine Corps

When asked what they want to be when they grow up, children are often quick to respond “policeman,” “firefighter” or “doctor.”

Col. Michael Scalise had an answer for that question when he was five years old. That answer turned into a 30-year career with the United States Marine Crops.

“I’ve never known a time in my life I didn’t want to be a Marine,” said Scalise, a Hampton native. “For whatever reason, something hit me in the brain when I was 5 or 6 that I wanted to be a sergeant because I thought all Marines were sergeants at the time.”

His childhood dream even came complete with a set of Marine Corps dress blues when he was five years old.

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