Mark Chase:
CLASS OF 1976
Mills High SchoolClass of 1976
Millbrae, CA
Mark's Story
Sergeant First Class Mark Laurence Chase was born in Townshend, Vermont on January 13, 1958. His family moved to California and he grew up in Burlingame, a city located approximately fifteen miles south of San Francisco. He enlisted in the Air Force on April 13, 1979, attended Basic Military Training School at Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio,Texas, and arrived at his first duty station, Keesler Air Force Base, Biloxi, Mississippi on May 30, 1979. Subsequently, he served in the Air Force for thirteen years, the Air Force Reserve for thirteen years, and the Mississippi Army National Guard for thirteen years. In the Air Force, he was a band trumpeter for seven years and an aerospace historian for six years. In the Air Force Reserve, he was a security police M60 machine-gunner for two years, an aerospace historian for four years, and a C130 Hercules aircraft communication-navigation systems craftsman/integrated avionic systems craftsman for seven years. In the Mississippi Army National Guard, he was an infantryman for four years, an M2 Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle crewman for three years, an M1A2 SEPv2 Abrams Tank crewman for three years, an M113 Armored Personnel Carrier crewman for two years, and an instructor in 1st Armor Training Battalion, 154th Regiment Regional Training Institute, Camp Shelby, Hattiesburg, Mississippi for one year. On January 14, 2018, the day after he retired from the Mississippi Army National Guard, he enlisted in the Mississippi State Guard, an all-volunteer organization tasked with assisting the forces of the Mississippi Army National Guard and/or Mississippi Air National Guard, as a force multiplier, upon the order of the Governor of the State of Mississippi, through the Adjutant General of the State of Mississippi. In the Mississippi State Guard, he was a military policeman, an instructor, and a recruiter. Four years later, he left the Mississippi State Guard and, on March 11, 2022, he enlisted in the Tennessee State Guard, an all-volunteer organization tasked with assisting the forces of the Tennessee Army National Guard and/or Tennessee Air National Guard, as a force multiplier, upon the order of the Governor of the State of Tennessee, through the Adjutant General of the State of Tennessee. Currently, he is a military policeman and a religious affairs specialist in Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Tennessee Regiment, Henderson, Tennessee. His military decorations include the Air Force Commendation Medal, the Air Force Achievement Medal with one bronze oak leaf cluster, the Army Achievement Medal with two bronze oak leaf clusters, the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with one bronze letter “V” (Valor) device for a direct combat support action and two silver oak leaf clusters, the Air Force Organizational Excellence Award, the Air Force Good Conduct Medal with three bronze oak leaf clusters, the Air Reserve Forces Meritorious Service Medal with three bronze oak leaf clusters, the Army Reserve Components Achievement Medal with two bronze oak leaf clusters, the National Defense Service Medal with one bronze service star, the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Armed Forces Service Medal, the Humanitarian Service Medal with one bronze service star, the Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal, the Air Force Overseas Short Tour Ribbon, the Air Force Longevity Service Ribbon with one silver oak leaf cluster and two bronze oak leaf clusters, the Armed Forces Reserve Medal with the bronze “Hourglass” device for serving a total of ten years in the Air Force Reserve and the Mississippi Army National Guard—later superseded by the silver "Hourglass" device for serving a total of twenty years in the Air Force Reserve and the Mississippi Army National Guard--and one bronze letter "M" (Mobilization) device for transitioning from reserve status to active duty status for the Mississippi Army National Guard Task Force Rifles peacekeeping deployment to Bosnia in 2001-2002 during Operation Joint Forge, where he served as an NCOIC in a Tactical Operations Center, the United States Air Force NCO Professional Military Education (PME) Graduate Ribbon for graduation from the NCO Leadership School, the Army NCO Professional Development Ribbon for graduation from the Primary Leadership Development Course with the bronze service numeral “2” device for graduation from the Basic NCO Course—later superseded by the bronze service numeral “3” device for graduation ...Expand for more
from the Advanced NCO Course, the Air Force Training Ribbon, the Army Service Ribbon, the NATO Medal for participation in Operation Joint Forge, the Mississippi Longevity Medal with one bronze oak leaf cluster, the Mississippi State Guard (MSSG) Commendation Ribbon, the MSSG Longevity Service Ribbon with one bronze oak leaf cluster, the MSSG Recruitment Ribbon, the MSSG Training Ribbon with the silver service numeral “1” device for completion of the Initial Entry Training Program, the MSSG Association Membership Ribbon, the Tennessee State Guard Service Ribbon with the bronze service numeral "2" device for completion of two years of service, the State Guard Association of the United States (SGAUS) Recruiting Achievement Ribbon, the SGAUS Longevity Ribbon, the SGAUS Professional Development Ribbon for completion of the Primary (Warrior) Leader Course through the SGAUS PME Academy with the bronze service numeral “2” device for completion of the Advanced Leader Course through the SGAUS PME Academy—later superseded by the bronze service numeral “3” device for completion of the Senior Leader Course through the SGAUS PME Academy, and the SGAUS Membership Ribbon with two gold stars for lifetime membership. In 1988, he was selected as the enlisted recipient of Strategic Air Command’s General James H. Doolittle Project Warrior Award for 1987, the year he co-founded and, as an additional duty, served as the first curator of the Vandenberg Air Force Base Space and Missile Museum. In 1991, he co-founded and, as an additional duty, served as the first curator of the Keesler Air Force Base Heritage Display. He earned an Associate in Arts degree in Liberal Arts from Allan Hancock College in 1989, an Associate in Applied Science degree in Aerospace History from Community College of the Air Force in 1991, an Associate in Applied Science degree in Music from Community College of the Air Force in 1991, an Associate in Applied Science degree in Avionic Systems Technology from Community College of the Air Force in 2006, and an Associate of Arts degree in Music from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College in 2010. He is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree in History and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music Education from William Carey University. He actively participates in Freemasonry, as a Master Mason in the fraternal order of Free and Accepted Masons, an oath-bound society devoted to fellowship, moral discipline, and mutual assistance; as a Thirty-Second-Degree Mason in the Scottish Rite, whose mission is to improve its members and enhance the communities in which they live by teaching and embracing the principles of brotherly love, tolerance, charity, and truth, while actively embracing high social, moral, and spiritual values, including fellowship, compassion, and dedication to God, family, and country--to include supporting the Dyslexia Foundation, one of the Scottish Rite's chosen philanthropies, whose mission is to support programs for reading-disabled persons such as, but not limited to, teacher training, providing educational opportunities and therapies for children, and helping those who are reading disabled; as a Knight Templar in the York Rite, one of the appendant bodies of Freemasonry that a Master Mason may join to further his knowledge of Freemasonry; as a Noble in the Shriners, an organization dedicated to serving mankind through the resources of its philanthropy and Shriners Hospitals for Children; as an Advisor in the Order of DeMolay, a fraternity whose purpose is to develop civic awareness, personal responsibility, and leadership skills in young men aged twelve to twenty-one; as a member of the Philalethes Society, a Masonic research society based in North America that is designed to serve the needs of those in search of deeper insight into the history, rituals, and symbolism of Freemasonry; and as a member of the National Sojourners, an American patriotic organization comprised of current or former members of the uniformed forces of the United States who are Master Masons. The National Sojourners organization's stated purpose is to develop true patriotism and Americanism throughout our nation by assisting local Masonic authorities through initiatives which promote American patriotism and Americanism, both with the fraternity and the community--to include youth leadership programs, essay contests, educational programs, and involvement in ROTC and JROTC awards. He has been a resident of Ocean Springs, Mississippi since August 1, 1983.
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