FLOWERY BRANCH, GA, UNITED STATES -- Since childhood, Jack Lowe always envisioned a future serving in the military.
Jack’s great grandfather was a pilot in the Marine Corps. His grandfather served in the Navy during the Vietnam War. Both of his parents served in the Marine Corps.
So naturally, Jack planned to join the United States Marine Corps upon graduating high school in line with his family’s proud tradition of military service. However, in March 2022, as a junior in high school Jack received devastating news—he was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer.
In the weeks following his diagnosis, Jack received 36 proton radiation treatments while concurrently completing six months of in-patient chemotherapy. Within six months of his diagnosis, Jack was deemed cancer free and marked the milestone by “ringing the bell” as he left the hospital.
In August 2023, Jack went in for surgery to have a rod and pins put into his left femur to help support the bone while it continued to heal from the treatments. During the procedure, he told his doctor he had been experiencing intense pain in his back and legs all summer.
During the procedure, scans and tests were performed. Doctors discovered the cancer had returned and spread to his upper body. They immediately started Jack on six weeks of experimental chemotherapy; however, the cancer aggressively grew and spread to other places in his body.
Further testing revealed the cancer to be chemotherapy resistant and his oncology team has declared him terminal with only a short window of life. Jack asked his family to stop treatment because he was tired of being “poked and prodded.”
“Our greatest weapon is the fighting spirit found in each and every Marine." Brig. Gen. Walker Field, the commanding general of Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island and the Eastern Recruiting Region.
Following his terminal diagnosis, many of Jack’s friends and family began reaching out to see if they could make his dream of becoming a U.S. Marine a reality. The Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. Eric Smith received the request and approved Jack for the title of Honorary Marine.
On November 1, Jack was designated an Honorary Marine at his home in Flowery Branch, Georgia, by Brig. Gen. Walker Field, the commanding general of Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island and the Eastern Recruiting Region.
With Marines and family in attendance, Field removed his personal Eagle, Globe, and Anchor from his uniform and handed it to Jack’s father Daniel, a retired Marine. Visually emotional, Daniel awarded the EGA to his son.
During the ceremony, Field praised Jack for his resiliency.
“Our greatest weapon is the fighting spirit found in each and every Marine,” said Field. “Throughout this very challenging time, Jack has displayed a tenacious fight underpinned by steady resolve and a wry, witty sense of humor. Henceforth, we as Marines embrace him as one of our own.”