Marc Garcia

Interview Description

Oral History Interview with Colonel Marc Garcia

Colonel Marc Garcia, of the United States Army Reserve and the United States Department of State, was born in 1962 in Brooklyn, New York to parents of Colombian and Haitian heritage. Garcia grew up in Queens, where he graduated from Holy Cross High School. Garcia attended the historically-African American Hampton Institute (now Hampton University) in Virginia, where he joined the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) and the Virginia Army National Guard. As a freshman in college, Garcia was promoted meritoriously to the position of sergeant, and as a sophomore in college was commissioned as a second lieutenant. Upon graduation from college, Garcia moved to Brooklyn, where he worked for Assemblyman Roger L. Green as a legislative aide, and became an elected county commissioner. Garcia spent time working at the United Nations before leaving to work in the United States Department of State as a foreign service specialist under Ambassador Vernon Walters, a retired three-star general. In 2009, Garcia was activated as a member of the Virginia Army National Guard and was sent to Iraq to serve as a Military Police Battalion Commander. When he returned in November of 2010, Garcia was promoted to Colonel for his performance in Iraq. At the time of the 2011 interview, Garcia looked forward to an official promotion to Colonel.

In this interview, Colonel Marc Garcia provides a detailed account of his military and civilian career, which was spent as a member of the Virginia National Guard and a foreign services specialist at the United States Department of State. In the interview's beginning, Garcia describes the evolution of Brooklyn throughout the 1980s, including from being filled with renters and artists, to being filled with single-family homes. He discusses workaday life at the offices of New York Assemblyman Roger L. Green and the economic development of Brooklyn that resulted from the Metrotech Plan. At the interview's end, Garcia discusses his service in the Iraq War, which led to his decoration as a Colonel in the division of Military Police. He describes the next day's pinning ceremony and celebration plans thereafter. Interview conducted by Sady Sullivan.

The Voices of Brooklyn oral histories: Veterans and wartime series features a dynamic range of narrators. Some are well-known figures in their community and others are well-known in their field. Many share their experience or insight into life in the armed services. Some also recall life as a civilian during times of war. This ongoing collection focuses on Brooklyn history and the experiences of these narrators document national and international history as well. The oldest narrator in this collection was born in 1910.

Citation

Garcia, Marc, Oral history interview conducted by Sady Sullivan, February 18, 2011, Voices of Brooklyn oral histories: Veterans and wartime, 2008.031.7.003; Brooklyn Historical Society.