John R. Massaro

History

Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps

The Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps is selected by the Commandant of the Marine Corps to serve as his advisor and as the preeminent and highest ranking enlisted Marine with a protocol equivalency of a three-star general officer.

The Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps typically serves a four-year term, though his service is at the discretion of the Commandant of the Marine Corps.

'Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps' is the full wording of the rank, but the verbal address is Sergeant Major.

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Although not officially considered a Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, Archibald Sommers was appointed to the grade of Sergeant Major on January 1, 1801. It was a solitary post, similar to the modern billet of Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps.

In 1833, an act of legislation made the rank of sergeant major permanent for the Marine Corps. By 1899, five Marines held the rank of sergeant major. The rank was abolished in 1946 and re-introduced in 1954 as part of the Marine Corps rank structure.

The post of Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps was established in 1957 as the senior enlisted advisor to the Commandant of the Marine Corps. It was the first such post in any of the five branches of the United States Armed Forces. The first official Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps was Sergeant Major Wilbur Bestwick.

In 1970, the distinctive rank insignia of the Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps was authorized. It features the Eagle, Globe and Anchor flanked by two five-point stars, as opposed to the standard Sergeant Major rank insignia, which has a single five-point star in the center.

Find Previous Sergeants Major photos at Defense Visual Information.

Previous Sergeants Major of the Marine Corps

Sergeant Major
JOHN R. MASSARO
USMC (RETIRED)
1 Apr 1977 - 15 Aug 1979

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8th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps

John R. Massaro

Sergeant Major John R. Massaro assumed the post of 8th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps on 1 April 1977.

Sergeant Major Massaro was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on 22 May 1930. He graduated from Orrville High School in Orrville, Ohio, in 1948 and enlisted in the Marine Corps on 6 August 1948. He underwent recruit training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, South Carolina.

Following recruit training, Sergeant Major Massaro was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 6th Marines, 1st Marine Division as a rifleman, before transferring to Marine Corps Base, Camp Pendleton, California. He remained there until March 1950. From Camp Pendleton, he was assigned to the Marine Barracks, U.S. Navy Supply Depot, Clearfield, Utah, as a security guard.

That was followed by the first of three tours as a drill instructor at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, California. He served on the drill field until April 1952, when he rejoined the 1st Marine Division in Korea. He was decorated for actions in combat during that tour.

From Korea, Sergeant Major Massaro returned to San Diego for duty as a drill instructor and later as an instructor at Drill Instructor School. In August 1955, he was a company gunnery sergeant with the 1st Marine Division's Reconnaissance Company and later the 1st Force Reconnaissance Company, remaining there until November 1959.

Sergeant Major Massaro was then transferred to Headquarters and Headquarters Squadron, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing in Iwakuni, Japan. He returned to the 1st Force Reconnaissance Company for duty as company Gunnery Sergeant and later as Company First Sergeant. In June 1963, Sergeant Major Massaro returned to San Diego for a third tour as a drill instructor, serving as Chief Drill Instructor.

He then transferred to the Inspector-Instructor Staff of the 4th Reconnaissance Company in San Bernadino, California. In 1967, the Sergeant Major joined the 3d Engineer Battalion, 3d Marine Division, in the Republic of Vietnam. He was initially assigned as a company First Sergeant and later became the battalion Sergeant Major.

He next reported to the Marine Corps Recruiting Station in San Francisco, California, and served as Recruiting Station Sergeant Major until August 1972. He then returned overseas and served as group Sergeant Major of Marine Aircraft Group 36 on Okinawa. Following that tour, he reported to Headquarters Marine Corps where he served as Sergeant Major to the Inspector General of the Marine Corps.

In May 1976, he became Sergeant Major of the 1st Marine Division at Camp Pendleton, California, and remained in that billet until his selection as Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps.

Sergeant Major Massaro's personal decorations include the Navy Commendation Medal with Combat "V" and gold star in lieu of second award; and the Combat Action Ribbon. He is also qualified to wear the Navy and Marine Corps Parachutist Insignia and Scuba Diver's Insignia.