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- I'm Captain Marcelus Chambers.

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I'm from the South Side, Chicago,

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and I'm a soldier in
the United States Army.

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I lived the majority of my life,

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in the Washington Park and
Westwood Lawn neighborhoods.

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I attended High Park Academy.

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My community helped raise me.

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As an individual growing
up on the South Side,

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I had to walk a fine-line

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of understanding the culture

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and the environment that I was living in,

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and being able to navigate the hazards

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and the opportunities on
the South Side of Chicago.

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I knew growing up that my parents

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would only be able to provide me so much.

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And fortunately the Army Reserves

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was able to fund my college education.

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I graduated, eventually,
with a bachelors degree

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and a masters degree with zero debt.

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We Chicagoans develop a sixth sense.

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And that particular sense, I believe,

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has helped me in my service in Iraq,

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on missions in Romania,

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developing relationships
while serving in Sri Lanka,

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or any other place I've been in the world

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and the United States.

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Chicago itself, shaped me
into the person that I am

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with everything it had to
offer, both good and bad.

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And I brought that skill-set to the Army

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and although, the Army isn't perfect,

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it's about as close to
utopia I have ever been.

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I would charge any young person,

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who is at a crossroad
or not, to definitely

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look at the Army and the
Army Reserve as an option.

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There are hundreds of
jobs in the Army Reserve

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that fits you, one of those jobs fits you.

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That you can excel in, and not
only can you be successful,

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and be a part of something
that is bigger than yourself,

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but you can also help an organization

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that represents the country.