Alum brings USMC Battle Color Detachment to Calipatria
CALIPATRIA — The last time Anthony G. Lopez stepped onto Veterans’ Field here in uniform was in 1997.
That uniform consisted of a football helmet, shoulder pads and Calipatria High School’s navy blue and yellow football jersey.
After graduating from CHS that year, an 18-yearold Lopez shipped off to U.S. Marine Corps boot camp and didn’t look back.
With more than 20 years of service now under his belt, he returned to Veterans’ Field on Thursday morning in a different uniform — one with a bit more flair.
His medals shined over his BlueWhite Dress uniform. His patches showed the rank he earned this summer: first sergeant — the highest rank available for an enlisted Marine.
Lopez, however, wasn’t the center of attention on Thursday.
Community members, veterans and students from all Calipatria Unified schools filled the bleachers of Veterans’ Field to watch the USMC Battle Color Detachment perform its battle color ceremony.
The ceremony featured the U.S. Marine Drum & Bugle Corps, the Silent Drill Platoon and the Marine Corps Color Guard.
All the groups are attached to Marine Barracks Washington, also known as the “Oldest Post of the Corps.”
The Marines appear in hundreds of ceremonies annually across the country and abroad
Lopez worked to include CHS as
one of the detachment’s stops during its 2020 tour, which runs from Feb. 26 to March 4 across the
West Coast.
Today, they’ll be performing at Marine Corps Recruiting Depot San Diego.
About a month ago, Lopez reached out to CHS’ Principal Joe Derma, inquiring if the detachment could perform at CHS during its tour. Derma immediately accepted. CHS is perhaps one of the most fitting schools to host the detachment: It’s just down the street from the world’s largest flagpole, its football field is named after veterans and its principal, Joe Derma, is currently in the Army National Guard (Command Sgt. Major, 40th Infantry Division).
“We’re the smallest high school in the Imperial Valley, and we were selected for the Marine Corps to do their presentation,” Derma said. “I told the students that it’s a testament to who they are as students.”
Derma was actually Lopez’s football coach while Lopez was at CHS. The two have managed to keep in contact over the years.
“I’ve known him since he was probably in middle school,” Derma said of Lopez.
The principal said he was “ex
tremely proud” after seeing his former student in uniform Thursday.
During the ceremony’s opening remarks, Derma gave the detachment an appreciation award on behalf of CHS. He also gave Lopez a division command sergeant major coin.
Lopez also honored Derma, presenting his former principal with a certificate for his faithful 30 years of service.
The two shared a hug afterwards. With a microphone in hand, Lopez told those in attendance that he was a CHS alumni.
“I once sat where you’re sitting,” he said. “They were not as nice. They were wooden bleachers.”
He went on to explain that, from April to August each year, the detachment performs at the national capital regional for congressmen and senators.
“But to be able to do it here in this field, it’s a dream, and it means a lot,” Lopez said.
Thursday marked the end of a complete circle for Lopez — shipping out at 18 years old and coming back home to showcase the Marine Corps and give back to his community.
“If you have a dream, you can make it happen,” he said.