The Marine Corps Association (often abbreviated MCA) is the professional organization for members of the United States Marine Corps and friends of the Corps. It is known for its publications Leatherneck Magazine and Marine Corps Gazette. As of 2009, MCA became part of MCA&F, the Marine Corps Association & Foundation.
The MCA occupies a similar role with respect to the Marine Corps that the United States Naval Institute does for the United States Navy, the Association of the United States Army does for the United States Army, and the Air & Space Forces Association does for the United States Air Force and United States Space Force.
Role The MCA is committed to supporting ALL Marines and fostering education and professionalism within the U.S. Marine Corps. It offers professional education programs, publications (the Gazette and Leatherneck), and other support to Marines. MCA provides events and services to Marines for which the Marine Corps cannot use appropriated funds and is the largest provider of awards to Marines in the world with over 9,000 provided annually.
MCA hosts numerous events annually. These events include six awards dinners where Marines (active duty and reserve) and civilians are presented with more than 40 prestigious awards. The Leftwich Trophy, Hulbert Trophy, Chambers Award, and Shea Award are presented annually at MCA events. Notable speakers at past events include former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, Gen David Petraeus, Gen Martin Dempsey, Gen Joseph Dunford, Gen Robert Neller, Gen John M. Paxton Jr., and Sean Stackley. MCA also hosts professional dinners in various locations including Hawaii, Camp Lejeune, and Camp Pendleton.
History
Origin
"We formed the Marine Corps Association after each of us had contributed all he could afford," stated a participant at a meeting on 25 April 1911 at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, attended by every officer of Colonel L.W.T. Waller's 1st Provisional Marine Brigade. These officers represented 25 percent of the commissioned strength of the Corps. Their stated purpose was to preserve the existence and status of the Marine Corps. In an April 1963 Gazette article, Colonel Robert D. Heinl, Jr., reviewed the turbulent era and events leading to the meeting of these officers and their willingness to stake the newborn group with a fund of more than $5,000.00 out of their own pockets.
Less than two months later, the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade was disbanded without any provision having been made to nurture the infant organization formed on that date. The seed, however, had been sown.
Two years later, again at Guantanamo Bay, officers of the 2d Provisional Marine Brigade commanded by Colonel Lincoln Karmany formally organized the Marine Corps Association. Colonel Karmany appointed Lieutenant Colonel John A. Lejeune as the senior member of a three-man executive committee; 60 officers of the Brigade enrolled as members. The association's purpose was outlined in the following statement signed on 25 April 1913 by the executive committee:
"For the purpose of recording and publishing the history of the Marine Corps, publishing a periodical journal for the dissemination of information concerning the aims, purposes and deeds of the Corps, and the interchange of ideas for the betterment and improvement of its officers and men, the undersigned hereby form an association to be known as The Marine Corps Association, membership in which shall be open to all officers of the Corps."
In early 1915, the command post of the association moved from the field into the commandant's office. A board of control consisting of the commandant, Major General George Barnett as president, and two other officers, Colonel John A. Lejeune and Colonel George Richards, was elected, and a constitution was adopted. The first formally recorded board of control meeting was held on 17 January 1916 in the office of the commandant. The first issue of the Marine Corps Gazette was published in March 1916. An article in that issue provided an account of the development of the association.
Although the Marine Corps Association of today engages in various commercial activities and provides a number of services to its members, those who founded the association had no thought of any direct personal reward or material gain for themselves or for the association's members. This was made clear in the initial Constitution, which set forth the purposes of the association as follows:
"The purposes for which the Association is formed are to disseminate knowledge of the military art and science among its members, and to provide for their professional advancement; to foster the spirit and preserve the traditions of the United States Marine Corps; to increase the efficiency thereof; and to further the interests of the military and naval services in all ways not inconsistent with the good of the general government."
This statement of purposes, probably penned by Lejeune, has endured. It appears unchanged in the association's current articles of incorporation and by-baws.
From 1915 to 1976 the commandant, who was president of the association, presided over its meetings and was responsible for supervising its activities. Since then the commandant has continued to be involved as the honorary president, and the assistant commandant has been elected president. The longstanding relationship with the active Marine Corps continues with the close ties and working relationships with Headquarters Marine Corps; which has characterized the association's operations since 1915 and will continue to be essential for the association's success in fulfilling its mission.
The Marine Corps Association is a manifestation of the wisdom, initiative, dedication and loyalty of a corps of outstanding officers such as Waller, Karmany, Lejeune, Little and many others whose vision led the Marine Corps forward and resulted in its becoming a significant and respected element of the nation's armor.
World War I to World War II
In an article in the March 1918 issue of the Gazette, the secretary-treasurer pointed out that the value of the Gazette determined in great measure the value of the association in carrying out its purpose of advancing professionalism in the Corps. Noting that the Corps had "suddenly expanded from 10,000 to 36,000" with more to come, the author stressed the need to maintain its traditional high standards. He urged all association members to take pen in hand and write for the Gazette, and he provided an exhaustive list of possible subjects.
A special meeting of the board of control was held on 29 July 1918 to elect a replacement for Major General Lejeune, who had departed "on overseas expeditionary duty." At this meeting, Major W. C. Wise, Jr., proposed that "suitable plaques or tablets be installed in the destroyers named after Marines." The board adopted the proposal and an appropriation not exceeding $400 was made from the association's funds to defray the expense of purchasing a number of tablets to be installed on board certain vessels of the Navy about to be christened with the names of distinguished deceased officers and enlisted men of the Marine Corps."
The commandant and four other members of the board were appointed as a committee to carry out this resolution. This action of the board was "in pursuance of the constitutional provision that one of the purposes of the Association is to foster the spirit and preserve the traditions of the United States Marine Corps." Thus was inaugurated the association's award program, which today is a significant contribution to the Corps.
By March 1926, the board of control had evolved into a body of 15 directors, the officers of which were the president, vice-president, secretary/treasurer, and the editor of the Gazette. An executive committee was charged with the "direct management and control of the affairs of the Association and with carrying out the policies of the President and Board of Directors." Dues were $5 per year for active members and $2 per year for associate members. About one-half of the officers of the Corps were active members. The Gazette was published quarterly with dues barely sufficient to defray the cost of publication.
In the early 1930s, the association "found itself at the crossroads." Of the 1,178 commissioned and warrant officers in the Corps, 403 were members of the association. Nine of the 12 general officers and 21 of the 34 colonels were enrolled. Dues had been reduced to $3 per year. The annual income was only $1,209. One proposal would have the association consolidate with the U.S. Naval Institute and another would have the Gazette merge with Leatherneck. These proposals were rejected. Instead, Brigadier General George Richards was asked to draft and distribute an appeal for support to the "entire officer personnel of the Marine Corps" who were not members of the association.
In the August 1932 issue of the Gazette, General Richards published the results of his efforts, reporting that membership had been increased to 744 active members and that the annual income had increased by 80 percent to a total of $2,232. In his detailed report he chided junior officers who complained that they could not afford $3 per year by pointing out that, "... this is less than one cent a day – the cost of one cigarette." Through the efforts of General Richards and others who supported it, the association made it through the lean years during and following the depression. In his report, General Richards attempted to dispel the notion (a notion still prevalent) that the association was, mostly about the Gazette. He stated:
"The Association publishes its magazine; the membership receives copies – but, no officer should understand that in joining the Association as a member he is only subscribing to a magazine. That publication and its distribution are the means through which the purposes of the Association are fulfilled."
Post World War II
In an April 1953 Gazette piece marking the "40th anniversary" of the founding of the association, the editors observed that, "For a while the organization seemed to live the life of a gypsy, wandering up and down the East Coast. New York, Philadelphia, Norfolk, Baltimore and Washington housed either the Association or the Gazette before both found a home at Quantico early in 1946." Before 1943 the Gazette had been published quarterly. By 1947 the association was well established at Quantico and the Gazette had become a monthly publication supported by appropriated funds with a staff of active duty Marines. In 1944 non-profit status for the association was approved by the Internal Revenue Service. The association had evolved informally during the war years into a recognized and fully supported Marine Corps entity, but it needed official recognition and status. On 2 May 1947, General Vandegrift, in his capacity as president, approved a "Revised Constitution of the Marine Corps Association," providing the framework within which the association operated until the early 1970s, when all appropriated fund support was withdrawn.
In the new Constitution the statement of purpose was carried over verbatim from the original Constitution. Nonvoting membership was opened to any member or former member of "the armed services of the United States." The board of governors now consisted of:
Commandant of the Marine Corps Director, Division of Plans & Policies Director, Division of Public Relations Director, Division of Aviation Commandant of Marine Corps Schools Secretary/treasurer