MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- You may have heard the voice on the radio, seen the writing in the newspaper or possibly noticed the face at the chow hall. He's there one minute and somewhere else the next.
No, Cpl. Damerice Pierre isn'?t some sort of action hero. He's just a man hungry to try new things.
"I just like to do things I'm interested in. I have a passion for writing, and I love going on the radio as a disc jockey," said Pierre, a chief cook at the Southside Chow Hall. "It's all a challenge for me."
Despite working the tiring hours associated with the chow hall, the 22 year old seems to find ample time to pursue other endeavors.
"I do my military job to the best of my ability, and on my off time I do what I'm passionate about," said the New Orleans native.
Pierre's passions stem from creative juices that never seem to stop flowing. Not only does the Marine work constantly with the American Forces Network, but is also currently looking into writing a book of poems. A self-proclaimed modern day hippie, Pierre may just be able to do it all.
"I think of myself as a hippie, but not in the drugged out 1969 type of way. More like a free spirit. I get my inspiration from Bob Marley, and I like to let it flow," he said.
If writing stories and poems while also appearing on AFN wasn't enough, Pierre also volunteers at the Station Red Cross and the Combat Visual Information Center.
He is also a talented musician whose band back home plays raga funk like his idol Bob Marley use to jam out.
According to Pierre, his efforts in expanding his horizons and learning new things are not a big deal. He just wishes more Marines and Sailors would take advantage of the different activities the Station offers.
"I hear people mope around all day saying how there is never anything to do on this base. It's not true at all, you just have to go out and find it.
"Nobody has ever said no to me when I wanted to learn something new. I'm going to keep doing the things I enjoy until someone does tell me no," he said.