Louisville native and United States Marine Corps veteran John Davis is a senior majoring in .

After attending a small liberal arts college in central Kentucky, Davis decided college was not for him and enlisted in the Marine Corps in 2012, where he served until 2022. 

Davis then enrolled at the J.B. Speed School of Engineering, which he calls the “best engineering school in Kentucky.”

As an infantryman in the Marine Corps, Davis worked his way up to sergeant, infantry squad leader and marksmanship instructor.

After boot camp at Parris Island, South Carolina, his first assignment was with the 3rd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion in Twentynine Palms, California as a scout.

While assigned to Twentynine Palms he deployed twice to the Pacific. During the first deployment, he was attached to the Combat Assault Battalion in Okinawa. During his second deployment, he was with the Battalion Landing Team of 2nd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment part of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, which embarked aboard the USS Green Bay and the USS Bon Homme Richard.

In addition to Okinawa, Japan, his deployments took him to Thailand and the Philippines.

After reenlisting, Davis was stationed in Virginia at the Formal Marksmanship Training Center as a Designated Marksmanship Instructor. At first, he worked on a range facility on Naval Dam Neck Annex in Virginia Beach.

In 2018, the Formal Marksmanship Training Center’s operations moved to a new range facility aboard Naval Weapons Station Yorktown.

While assigned to the Formal Marksmanship Training Center, Davis’ duties included range safety officer and coach for individual shooters, who ranged from private to general.

When the COVID-19 pandemic struck in March 2020, Davis’ unit was the only active Marine Corps range facility on the eastern seaboard. 

This caused the unit to become extremely busy. He recalls working virtually every weekend for the rest of 2020, as reserve units from as far as New York were bused down to meet their numbers.

Davis is married, with two young kids. He is currently working part-time in his third co-op at GE Appliances and anticipates working at GE after graduating from UofL.

Knuckles, from Atlanta, served in the Marine Corps as a Marine Musician and Small Ensemble Leader from 1995 to 2018. His 23-year career enabled him to see much of the world, including 10 different duty stations, an assignment to Okinawa, Japan, and two deployments to Iraq.

It was while on a recruiting visit to UofL with the U.S. Marine Corps Jazz Orchestra that Knuckles to decide to enroll at UofL’s School of Music after his career in the Marine Corps ended. He is now scheduled to graduate in May 2022.

Knuckles said the faculty and students at UofL have been wonderful to work with, and that UofL has given him an opportunity to decompress from active duty while focusing on what he loves to do.

Chris Fitzgerald, associate professor of Performance Studies, has been his “go-to” faculty member, and calls him a “mentor who has always been a perfect sounding board and friend throughout my experience here at UofL.”

After graduation, Knuckles intends to complete his Master’s in jazz performance in New York and then to go back to Georgia to teach at the college level. He said Fitzgerald’s teaching style and knowledge is what he aspires to emulate when he is a professor. 

The University of Louisville recognizes Knuckles’ service and the 246^th birthday of the United States Marine Corps on Nov. 10. 

His fond memories of his time in the Marine Corps include deploying to the Arabian Peninsula with the 24^th Marine Expeditionary Unit and 3^rd Battalion, 6^th Marines, and making the All-Marine softball team. He said the people he served with in the Marine Corps are what made his experiences great. During his time in the Marine Corps, he was awarded two Navy and Marine Corps Achievement medals, as well as a Meritorious Unit Commendation.

Post-graduation, Silkwood plans on utilizing his Criminal Justice degree to pursue a career in federal law enforcement, something he’s always wanted to do.

The University of Louisville recognizes Silkwood and his fellow Marines and veterans as the U.S. Marine Corps celebrates its 245^th birthday. The military branch was created November 10, 1775 at Tun Tavern in Philadelphia.

Story contributed by Kyle Hurwitz, director of Military Initiatives and associate director of Online Military Student Programs.

Charlie Mitchell, a senior communications major from Florence, Kentucky, is one of UofL’s many U.S. Navy veteran students. Mitchell served as a personnel specialist in the Navy from January 2009 to November 2016. That service included three deployments aboard the USS George Washington (CVN73), which brought him to Hong Kong, the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, South Korea, Guam, Australia and Malaysia. 

In March 2011 when Japan was hit by an earthquake and subsequent tsunami, Mitchell was deployed to Japan to assist in the rescue and recovery efforts. For his efforts, he received the Humanitarian Service Medal. He would subsequently go on to be awarded three United States Navy Achievement medals while serving at the Navy Operational Support Center, Louisville. In 2016, Mitchell ended his Navy career due to ongoing health issues. 

Mitchell, who grew up in Northern Kentucky, has always thought of UofL as a “great school,” and adds the family he married into are “huge supporters of UofL”. When he separated from the Navy, attending UofL was a natural fit.

Currently, Mitchell is employed at Kenway Distributors in Louisville, a business owned by his wife and father in-law. When he graduates, he plans on using his communications degree to help Kenway Distributors, which has been in business for almost 70 years.

The U.S. Navy traces its roots back to the early days of the American Revolution. On October 13, 1775, the Continental Congress established a naval force, hoping that a small fleet of privateers could attack British commerce and offset British sea power.

Story written by Kyle Hurwitz, director of Military Initiatives and associate director of Online Military Student Programs. 

When Farrell was deployed in 2016, he was featured on NBC Nightly News for surprising his brother Matt during a Notre Dame Basketball game. Matt will be a senior on that squad this season.

Farrell was stationed at OB Fenty, Jalalabad, Afghanistan. He served as part of the 4th Squadron, 3rd Calvary Regiment from Ft. Hood, Texas. 

Check out Bo and Matt’s emotional reunion below.