I Became a Marine After My Marine Father Killed a Gangster to Save His Kids

Marine Corps veteran Alex D’Hue served from 2002 to 2008 and was assigned to Third ANGLICO, where he worked in small fire control teams providing air support while attached to other units. In this episode of Urban Valor, Alex shares the story of his difficult childhood, growing up between America and Belgium, surviving an abusive household, and eventually joining the Marine Corps after 9/11.

Alex opens up to Urban Valor about the chaos of Marine Corps boot camp, the moments that nearly broke him, and how getting assigned to Third ANGLICO changed the direction of his military career. He later deployed to Iraq, where his team supported missions outside the wire, worked alongside Iraqi forces and U.S. units, and experienced the reality of combat in a way he never forgot.

One of the most intense moments of Alex’s deployment happened during a mission when his best friend Jackson took a sniper round to the helmet. Alex describes hearing “sniper fire,” seeing Jackson on the ground, dragging him back under cover, checking for blood, and realizing the helmet had stopped the round from going through. He also reflects on how the team’s movement afterward may have saved his own life.

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Chapters: 
00:00 Marine sees his best friend hit by sniper fire
01:13 Alex D’Hue’s Marine Corps background
01:32 Growing up in a broken home
04:58 Being sent to Belgium as a child
06:09 His grandfather’s World War II legacy
08:42 Child services visits the home
11:18 Growing up American in Belgium
13:37 Losing his grandmother to cancer
17:17 Returning to America at 13
19:41 His father’s murder trial
25:38 Reuniting with family in California
27:29 Abuse inside the household
30:16 Running away from home
31:07 Getting in trouble before joining the Marines
31:27 How 9/11 pushed him toward service
34:52 Arriving at Marine Corps boot camp
36:19 Chaos inside boot camp
38:42 Getting targeted by drill instructors
43:16 The brass casing incident
45:11 Fights and hazing in boot camp
49:08 The drill instructor who crossed the line
50:21 Joining Third ANGLICO
51:22 What ANGLICO Marines actually do
52:43 Getting NJP’d before his combat unit
59:02 Arriving at a combat unit
1:00:26 How ANGLICO deployments worked
1:09:35 Deploying to Iraq
1:10:22 First moments at Camp Ramadi
1:11:19 Working with Iraqi forces
1:15:10 The mission that turned deadly
1:15:58 “Sniper fire”
1:16:20 Jackson goes down
1:16:40 Dragging his best friend to cover
1:17:16 Checking the helmet and head wound
1:18:09 How the helmet saved Jackson
1:18:53 Trying to locate the sniper
1:20:21 Running in the sniper’s line of fire
1:23:27 Why Alex wanted Jackson medevaced
1:23:58 The zigzag that may have saved his life
1:24:57 Nearly falling while crossing open ground
1:26:10 What war does to brotherhood
1:27:24 Almost fighting an Army leader over a helmet strap
1:30:00 Reflections on deployment and Marine Corps culture

#military #warstories #urbanvalor #marines