MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. -- First Battalion, Sixth Marine Regiment’s top enlisted man relinquished his authority to his successor in a post and relief ceremony here Dec. 14Lieutenant Colonel William Jurney, the battalion’s commander, received a noncommissioned officer’s sword from Sgt. Maj. T.F. Hall, his senior enlisted advisor, and presented it to 1st Sgt. Ernest K. Hoopii to signify the transfer of staff NCO authority.Jurney then praised Hall’s accomplishments during his several years serving as his top advisor.“It’s only appropriate that we gather here as one team to bid farewell to Sgt. Maj. Hall,” Jurney said. “It’s been an honor to serve with him. You won’t find anyone with a better work ethic than Sgt. Maj. Hall, or anyone who does the right thing more when nobody is looking.”Hall then took the microphone to address his Marines one last time.“I’m proud of the Marine Corps until the day that I die, and I’ll always be proud of 1/6,” stated Hall, a native of Bardstown, Ky. “You all know how much I love that ‘Indian Head’ (the battalion’s logo).” “I don’t want to grow up, and I don’t want to leave 1/6,” he jokingly added.Hall’s service with the battalion includes a deployment to Afghanistan from February to September 2004 and a tour of duty in Fallujah, Iraq from March to September 2005.His personal awards include the Bronze Star Medal , Meritorious Service Medal and two Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medals. Hall now assumes the duties of battalion sergeant major for 2nd Assault Amphibian Battalion.Hoopii, a native of Wailuku, Hawaii and a former member of II Marine Expeditionary Force, 2nd Force Reconnaissance Company, will now oversee the good order and discipline of 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment. Like Hall, he has served alongside the battalion’s Marines in Afghanistan and Iraq, and has participated in operations in Haiti, Somalia and the Adriatic Sea.Hoopii’s personal awards include the Bronze Star Medal, Joint Service Commendation Medal and Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal.