CAMP MUJUK, POHANG, Republic of Korea -- Unlike the other Marines stationed on Camp Mujuk, Cpl. Dana Paek is not thousands of miles away from home. For her, Korea is home.
Growing up in Seoul, Paek lived a very conservative childhood. Every morning Paek and her brother woke up and ate breakfast with their parents then scurried off to school. At the end of the school day, when most children made their way home to play with their friends, the Paeks immediately went to church school. According to Paek, her conservative childhood shaped her into the person she is today.
“Growing up I didn’t have the typical childhood,” said Paek. “My parents really made sure I concentrated on school so I didn’t really have time for anything else. I was in a photography club for a short while but school was my primary focus.”
At the age of 14, the Paeks moved to Federal Way, Washington, in search of a brighter future for their children. According to Paek, the transition from Korea to the U.S. was not an easy one.
“The language barrier made it hard for me to make American friends,” said Paek. “In high school I mostly kepted to myself and didn’t speak much. When I did it was only to other Korean kids.”
After graduating from Todd Beamer High School in 2012, she faced another transition. While some of her contemporaries already had their future plans set in stone, Paek struggled with paving her destiny.
“At first I wanted to go to college but I wasn’t sure what I wanted to major in,” said Paek. “I saw a lot of college students just drifting from major to major, not knowing what they wanted to do in the future. I didn’t want to be one of those students.”
After a few months wrestling with her indecision, Paek found herself in a Marine Corps recruiting office.
According to Paek, stepping into that office changed her life.
“I’ve always been really quiet and timid growing up,” said Paek. “I figured the Marine Corps could give me the confidence to be more outgoing and confident. I really liked the way Marines carried themselves so I wanted to be like them.”
In 2013, Paek started her journey into the brighter future her parents sought out for her half a decade ago. Her journey began on Parris Island, where she stood on the very same yellow footsteps which hundreds of thousands of brave young adults stood before her.
According to Paek, it was here where she started to break out of her timid shell and began to speak up.
“I didn’t have much of a choice,” Paek joked. “I had to speak up or else.”
After graduating recruit training and Marine Combat Training, Paek was stationed in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton to be a supply administration and operations specialist. She quickly got bored of the monotonous and repetitive administration lifestyle. In search of a more exciting career path, she visited her manpower and reserve affairs department monitor in search of deployment opportunities. Though she was not able to deploy, she was informed of an opportunity to return to Korea.
“I was really excited when I heard about the position in Korea,” said Paek. “I’ve always wanted to come back at some point and to be here as part of the Marine Corps was a plus.”
In February of 2016, Paek reported to Camp Mujuk as the the supply chief. While stationed aboard Mujuk, located in the North Gyeongsang Province, Paek once again had another tough transition ahead of her.
“It’s a little hard adapting back into Korean culture,” said Paek. “After living in America, coming back to Korea was a little bit of culture shock but I look forward to getting back in touch with my Korean roots.”