Colonel Javier A. Garcia, a native of Agua Dulce, Texas, enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1991. He served as a helicopter electrician with MALS-39 at Camp Pendelton, CA and MALS-36 in Okinawa, Japan. He deployed aboard the USS Peleliu on the 15th MEU as part of OPERATION Southern Watch. In 2001, he earned his commission as a Second Lieutenant through the Marine Enlisted Commissioning and Education Program (MECEP) after graduating from Texas A&M University.
As an Aircraft Maintenance Officer, his operational assignments included two deployments with HMH-463, serving as a United Nations Military Observer in Liberia, and deploying from MALS-29 to MALS-40 at Camp Bastion, Afghanistan in support of OPERATION Enduring Freedom. He also served as a Marine Officer Instructor for the NROTC unit in New York City and as a Company Commander at Officer Candidates School.
A graduate of the Expeditionary Warfare School, the Marine Corps Command and Staff College (Master of Military Studies), the Defense Language Institute (Brazilian Portuguese), and the Inter-American Defense College (master’s degree in Inter-American Defense and Security), Colonel Garcia is currently a student (hybrid course) at the Joint Forces Staff College. He is also a Latin American Foreign Area Officer (8241).
Throughout his career, he commanded Aviation Maintenance Squadron 2 (AMS-2) and Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 12 (MALS-12). His staff assignments include serving at Mobilization Command, on the Naval Staff (N98-L) at the Pentagon, at the Inter-American Defense College, and as the Branch Head for the Manpower Management Performance Branch (MMPB) at Headquarters Marine Corps.
His personal decorations include the Legion of Merit, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal with two gold stars, the Joint Service Commendation Medal, the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with two gold stars, and the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal with a gold star.