Staff Sgt. Felix Vargas discusses what fitness means to him and the importance of it. He talks about how he got into lifting and the personal fulfillment he derives from it. Vargas is the staff noncommissioned officer-in-charge of Recruiting Substation Wesley Chapel. (U.S. Marine Corps video by Sgt. Calvin Shamoon)

In honor of Women’s History Month, II Marine Expeditionary Force presents the story of Staff Sgt. Leidys Vega, a Tampa, Fla. native and her journey overcoming a pituitary gland tumor. An immigrant from Cuba, Vega traveled to the Tampa Bay area when she was 6 years old. She was recruited out of Tampa into the Marine Corps in 2011. As her career within the Corps grew, so did her physical abilities. She achieved the Iron Woman award in boot camp and competed in body-building shows and bikini competitions in 2015. This is her story of overcoming the tumor and working her way back to her former strength. (U.S. Marine Corps video by Lance Cpl. Nicholas Guevara)

Cpl. Mathew Maddux, a member of Wounded Warrior Battalion - East and participant in the 2019 DoD Warrior Games, talks about how the games enhance rehabilitation and benefit wounded, ill or injured Marines and veterans. Maddux is the team Ambassador for the 2020 Warrior Games in San Antonio, Texas. The DoD Warrior Games were established in 2010 as a way to enhance the recovery and rehabilitation of wounded, ill or injured service members and veterans and to expose them to adaptive sports. (U.S. Marine Corps video by Cpl. Ben Whitten)

Lance Cpl. Annika Hutsler, a member of Wounded Warrior Battalion-West, tells her inspiring story of recovery and the road to the 2019 Warrior Games. The Warrior Games showcase the resilient spirit of today’s wounded, ill or injured service members from all branches of the military and provide a venue for recovering service members and veterans to demonstrate triumph over significant physical or invisible wounds and injuries. (U.S. Marine Corps video by Sgt. Annika Moody)

Marines partner with the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association conference in Tampa, Florida, April 4-7, 2019. The national convention is an opportunity for the Marine Corps to reach influencers who directly impact and engage with young women at all experience levels, to inform these individuals about opportunities within the Corps. Partnering with WBCA gives the Marine Corps access to one of the most influential target audiences: individuals who have the ability to impact the lives of prospects. (Marine Corps video by Cpl. Haley Mathers)

The Marines and future Marines of Recruiting Station Tampa introduce a program implemented to prepare future Marines for recruit training, April 3, 2018. This particular program was created to mirror the three phases of the former Marine Corps recruit training schedule. (U.S. Marine Corps video by Cpl. Jorge A. Rosales)

July 17th just before lunch, many of the Marines at U.S. Marine Forces Central Command scurried to log out of their computers and head outside. They were making their way to Bayshore Blvd where they lined the road and honored a fallen comrade killed in Afghanistan July 8th. Army SSGT Ricardo Seija, a Tampa native, was among six soldiers who died when their vehicle hit an improvised explosive device in the Wardak Province. We stood, all services, civilian employees and even some family members to honor the procession with a sharp salute as he and his family passed on their way out the base gate to his final resting place.The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, Florida Highway Patrol and Hernando County Sheriff's Office provided the honor escort. Available in high definition.