By Charley Falkenburg, Staff Writer
WEST WINDSOR When former Marine and Gulf War veteran Harry Martinez, 46, deployed to Afghanistan for his third military tour in 2004, he never thought that not only one, but both of his sons would follow in footsteps overseas.
But that’s exactly what Josh, 26, and his younger brother James, 20, did they joined the Marine Corps and headed to Afghanistan, where they walked the same streets, battled the same enemy and put their lives on the line for the very same war their father fought.
With a father who dedicated most of his life serving his country, Josh and James grew up in West Windsor under a strong military influence. However, it wasn’t until 9/11 when Josh was a sophomore at West Windsor-Plainsboro High School North, that he knew he wanted to be a Marine.
”I was looking at the front page of the newspaper every day and I was like ‘I want to do that,’” he said. “College was an option, but I wanted to really take it to the next level of teamwork and it looked like a challenge.”
So, after a year in the Air Force, Josh joined the Marines and left for his first tour in Afghanistan in 2008, where he learned what it takes to be the first line of defense in an insurgency.
”We kill people, that’s it that’s really what we do. We hunt people,” said Josh. “When you actually do it and you become very good at it, you become an artist and that’s what separates us (Marines) from a lot of other branches.”
Josh’s second deployment brought him to the Helmand Province in southern Afghanistan during the same time his father was fighting in the northern part of the country. Mr. Martinez said it wasn’t until he hopped a helicopter to visit his son in Kandahar, that it finally hit home.
”He was leaving and they were all dressed with their hand grenades, the bullets everything and I was saying goodbye to him,” said Mr. Martinez with a catch in his voice. “It was difficult to say goodbye to him, to touch him and tell him ‘I love you, be careful.’ It’s very difficult.”
But it was even more difficult for Mr. Martinez, when James also decided to join the Marines.
”I was actually supposed to do the college thing, but my dad had just gone to Afghanistan and my brother was just getting back,” said James. “I couldn’t just go to college. I didn’t want to be the only one to not go over there.”
James left for his first tour last December, which brought him to Marjah in southern Afghanistan. Although James went over with only basic fundamental training, he came back with a Navy Commendation Medal with Combat Valor a decoration he earned by showing leadership skills levels beyond his training grade, while he and his men were under attack.
”I remember tears coming to my eyes I was very proud of him and relieved he survived something like that and took on that great responsibility,” said Mr. Martinez. “There’s no reset on this xBox, this isn’t ‘Call of Duty.’ You’re running in this heat with 70 pounds worth of gear telling men they need to push forward even though it may kill them or you doing it.”
Although all they all deployed at varying times, they all recalled similar, if not the same harrowing challenges and adversities. Whether it was dealing with foreign terrain, working with soldiers from all walks of life, bridging cultural gaps or learning to trust their Afghan National Army counterparts.
”The Afghan National Army is supposed to be watching our backs and we ran into a lot of issues with that,” said James. “We actually had one of them kill our guys, but we still had to let them know we weren’t going to retaliate. We had to pretend like everything was OK.”
The Martinez men shared a myriad of tales and personal stories they experienced during their military career and they each had more than their fair share of close calls. They counted off times they had been shot at, recounted vehicles they had seen blow up and listed best friends and acquaintances who were killed.
Mr. Martinez, who said he has been in more than 100 a firefights during his 20-year military run, recalled times when he had been abandoned and times when he thought he was as good as dead. But to him, these kinds of experiences are part of wearing the uniform a job he would do again if his country asked it of him.
”This will always be my country and if my country asks me to do something that will make us live better, I am willing to do it . . .,” he said.
But his military career has taken its toll on Mr. Martinez’s family life and he has paid the price by dealing with divorce, missing almost two and a half years of his daughter Jessica’s childhood and going through tense periods with all of his children.
Between all of their deployments throughout the years, James’ return home this month marks the first time Josh, James, Mr. Martinez and his daughter Jessica, 16, have all sat at their dining room table together in three years.
”For me, to sit here with my sons is beyond words. To sit here with my daughter you can’t even measure that emotion,” said Mr. Martinez. “I am so proud of us that we’ve come through this as well as we have given what’s happened to us thus far.”
James still has two more years left to serve and is unsure of what the future holds.
Josh left the Marines four months ago after the government began to withdraw troops. He is now using his GI Bill to go to school full time at Fairleigh Dickinson to pursue a business and technology degree and plans on joining the National Guard.
Mr. Martinez retired from the Princeton Township police force in 2007, but still works as a military instructor for the National Guard. He’s going to hit 20 years in September and plans on renewing his contract for two more years so he can transfer his education benefits to his daughter.
The Martinez men cope with stress and anxiety in their own ways, whether by talking it out, being quiet or making jokes to prevent going into a deep, dark place.
But between them, they have created a strong support system that is always there even when their fellow Marines are not close by. While serving in the military tends to pull some families apart, the already strong bond between the Martinez Marines has only become more fortified.
”I look at these guys,” said Mr. Martinez, smiling at Josh and James. “And they are my sons, but they are now also my brothers.”

