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By IMMANUEL JOHNSON | STARS AND STRIPES
Published: May 28, 2020

Gabriel Ramirez spent his childhood dreaming of being a Marine, but that dream seemed unattainable as a 365-pound teen nicknamed “Meatball.”

This week, Ramirez, 18, was on his way to boot camp, 186 pounds lighter.

At the end of Ramirez’s sophomore year at Rancho Buena Vista High School in California, Marine recruiter Staff Sgt. Anna Rodrigues spoke to his class and later asked him about his interests.

“The kids I talk to, one thing I look for is heart,” Rodrigues said in a phone interview Wednesday. “I am looking for someone that won’t quit and will accept the challenge.”


The talk made a big impression, Ramirez, of Oceanside, Calif., said in a service statement prior to leaving for Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego.

In training to be an obedient master to my two labs

Shooting, fishing and hunting