Pfc. Elijah Weber, son of William and Tamara Weber of Discovery Bay, recently completed basic training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego. He successfully completed 12 weeks of training designed to challenge new Marine recruits both physically and mentally.

Elijah and his fellow recruits began their training each day at 4:30 a.m. by running three miles and performing calisthenics. In addition to the physical conditioning program, Elijah spent numerous hours in classroom and field assignments, which included first aid, uniform regulations, combat water survival, marksmanship, hand-to-hand combat and assorted weapons training. They performed close order drill and operated as a small infantry unit during field training.

Elijah also received instruction on the Marine Corps’ core values: honor, courage and commitment, and what the words mean in guiding personal and professional conduct. Elijah and his fellow recruits ended the training phase with the Crucible, a 54-hour team effort in problem solving. Elijah will be stationed at 29 Palms and continue his training as a Data Network Specialist.