CAMP TAJI, Iraq - For one 1st Air Cavalry Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division AH-64D Apache crew chief, a career in the Army began with a challenge.
Sgt. Mark Ramon Tudela Martinez was inspired to enlist by his cousin, now Sgt. 1st Class Joseph Castro, but not because of words of encouragement - Castro told Martinez he couldn't hack it.
Martinez decided to prove Castro wrong and joined the National Guard in Guam on Aug. 14, 1990, as a water purification specialist.
He continued his civilian career as a salesman for 10 years before giving it up to go on active duty. On June 22, 2000, at 31, he switched to active duty and switched military occupational specialties to become an attack helicopter repairer. He later deployed to Afghanistan in 2003 for Operation Enduring Freedom and to Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2004 with 1st Battalion "Expect No Mercy," 101st Aviation Brigade.
After a year in Korea, he arrived at Company A, 1st "Attack" Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment in June 2005 and deployed to Iraq for a second time in October 2006.
Seventeen years after the challenge from his cousin, Martinez continues to serve. As a member of a large family from Guam, the Army is a good fit for him, he said.
"I like to be around other people and learn about other cultures and ethnic groups," he said.
With wife Liza, Martinez has a fair-sized family of his own: two daughters, Julianna Marie, 14, and Michelle Lynn, 6, and a son Andrew Alvin, 11, all of Killeen, Texas.
Martinez said he credits his wife as the influence for his staying in the Army for so long.
"Even though it is hard on her while I'm deployed, she always tells me to 'Keep on going,'" he said.
Martinez is the supervisor of his maintenance section and responsible for maintaining records and the maintenance of the Apache helicopter.
His dedication to his mission has caught the eye of his company leadership.
"He doesn't care what anybody thinks, because he's going to do the right thing," said Co. A's top enlisted Soldier, 1st Sgt. Duane Dohrmann of Grainger, Texas. "He gets along great with everybody, and he messes with the pilots every now and then."
"Sergeant Martinez does all of the little things that help to make the company run," added Capt. Guyton Robinson, commander of Co. A and a native of Thomasville, Ga. "He keeps all of our vehicles running, keeps our tools calibrated and is one of our top aircraft mechanics."
Recognition for his contributions didn't stop with his company leadership. He recently received a commander's coin from Col. Dan Shanahan, 1st ACB commander
"He had stepped up to the plate," said Mt. Gilead, N.C., native Sgt. 1st Class Eto Haywood, Martinez' platoon sergeant. "The Soldiers really look up to him as a noncommissioned officer and in their daily duties."
Seventeen years after that fateful bet, Martinez has proven that his cousin could not have been more wrong.
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