ARLINGTON, Va. -- U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Dakota Meyer, a Medal of Honor recipient, returned to service on the afternoon of April 17, 2025, in the Pentagon’s Hall of Heroes.
“I believe the Marine Corps is, hands down, the best institution on the planet,” said U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Dakota Meyer, who was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the 2009 Battle of Ganjgal in Afghanistan.
Meyer raised his right hand and swore the Oath of Enlistment, the same words he spoke in 2006 when he first joined the Corps. Meyer, a native of Columbia, Kentucky, served in the Marine Corps from 2006 until 2010, when he was honorably discharged after two deployments to the Middle East.
On the morning of his reenlistment ceremony, Meyer took part in a physical training event alongside Pete Hegseth, the Secretary of Defense, U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. Carlos Ruiz, the Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, Tulsi Gabbard, the Director of National Intelligence, and a group of Marines stationed at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall.
Reenlistment
Photo by Lance Cpl. Abigail Hutcheson
U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Dakota Meyer, a Medal of Honor recipient, reenlists in a ceremony hosted by Pete Hegseth, Secretary of Defense, at the Pentagon, April 17, 2025. Sgt. Meyer is the only Medal of Honor recipient currently serving in the U.S. Marine Corps. (U.S. Marine Corps photos by Lance Cpl. Abigail Hutcheson)
“I think it’s great that leadership from even the highest levels came out to work out with us,” said U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Brian Ruiz, a motor transport operator who participated in the PT event. “Hearing that [Sgt. Meyer] is reenlisting is super motivating. He has so much experience and so much to say. It’s great.”
When asked why he decided to reenlist, Meyer recalled a moment when he spoke at a noncommissioned officer course. While speaking to the Marines there, Meyer said, a sergeant asked him if he should reenlist. Meyer responded, ‘Absolutely.’ Later, reflecting on his response to that young Marine, Meyer asked himself, “How could I ask them to continue to serve and sacrifice without doing it myself?” This question ultimately led to his decision to reenlist.
"You’ve got to be who you say you are and live by the standards you expect everybody else to live by. I had to look in the mirror and lay out who I wanted to be, then turn around and assess all my decisions and habits and decide if they were helping me get closer to who I needed to be." said U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Dakota Meyer, a Medal of Honor recipient
In the end, Meyer’s decision to reenlist was driven by a deep sense of responsibility, both to his fellow Marines and to himself.
“Still today, at my age, joining the Marine Corps is the single greatest thing that I have ever done,” Meyer said.