JANUARY 9, 2026 – Becoming a Marine was something Sgt. Matthew B. Holder, an Alabama native and a network administrator with Marine Wing Headquarters Squadron (MWHS) 2, always knew he wanted to do. After all, he grew up in the Marine Corps.
Holder’s father served as a Marine Corps AH-1 Cobra pilot, and growing up in a Marine family, he spent his childhood living on multiple Marine Corps bases including Camp Lejeune, Quantico, and Hawaii. Despite the constant change of his friends and his home, the Marine life continued to inspire him.
“I loved being around the military as a child, it influenced me to become who I am today. For there are no better friends and family than those you meet in the military,” said Holder. “When I was a kid, my brother and I used to go steal my dad’s CIF gear from the storage room, and he’d catch us running around the basement with a flak jacket and Kevlar on. It was always what I wanted to do.”
At first, Holder planned to pursue the officer route and began his college education. However, he quickly realized college was not the right fit and decided instead to enlist in the Marine Corps with a job in communications.
“I chose communications because I was sold on radio operators. Come to find out, you don’t get to choose what specific job you want in the occupational field. However, I am thankful I ended up getting network administrator,” said Holder. “There is a lot that goes into this job, and it plays a very critical role in operations and everything else we do in the Marine Corps.”
As a Lance Cpl., Holder’s first overseas deployment was to Norway in 2024. “I spent my time wiring command centers and troubleshooting laptops. Occasionally I got to work on the tactical grid network anytime it went down or required maintenance.” Holder’s experiences performing his job in Norway showed him how vital it was to the Marine Corps. “I learned a lot about my job while in Norway and how much of a crucial role it played.”
Holder also currently serves as the Single Marine Program representative for his unit, Marine Wing Headquarters Squadron 2. The SMP functions to support single Marines’ leisure interests and quality of life. SMP also serves as the voice for single Marines in identifying concerns, developing initiatives, and providing recommendations through advocacy, recreational activities, special events, and community involvement. “I became the SMP representative to help single Marines in the barracks get out of their rooms and enjoy their life,” said Holder. “To escape the everyday ‘drain’ that we all feel”.
As Holder progressed in his career, he began thinking about his long-term future in the Marine Corps. That time came when he was selected for the Commandant’s Retention Program, which is designed to retain high-quality Marines by providing incentives and opportunities.
“I had known about the CRP since before arriving to my first duty station and continued to work towards making it on the list for my fiscal year,” said Holder. “I eventually did make the list which allowed me to reenlist early and have a choice of duty station, both of which were worth the effort I put in”.
Considering his options, Holder spoke with fellow Marines in his section about potential opportunities. During those conversations, the Special Operations Capability Specialist program came up as a possibility.
Chief Warrant Officer 3 Nicholas Peres, a cyber network operations officer, “asked me what I wanted to do,” said Holder. “I said ‘sir, I joined the Marine Corps to deploy, to get out there, and to see what the Marine Corps had to offer other than a cubicle’. That’s when Peres informed me about the SOCS program”.
SOCS provides combat support expertise for Marine Special Operations Command at the team, company and battalion level. SOCS is open for different MOS’ in select occupational fields, the biggest one being communications. Motivated by a competitive drive and desire to challenge himself, Holder now sets his eyes toward the rigorous selection course on his horizon. “I’m definitely not the best,” said Holder. “But I’d like to be.”
From childhood memories of running around with his father’s gear in the basement to working with command centers critical for Marine Corps operations, Holder’s career has been shaped by a desire to do more than what is required. For Holder, the pursuit itself reflects why he joined the Marine Corps in the first place, to be challenged and to serve beyond the comfort of a desk. That same mindset continues to push him on his path toward more.
Story by Cpl. David Ornelasbaeza
2nd Marine Aircraft Wing