Reginald Myers was born in Idaho in 1919. He would attend the University of Idaho where he earned a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering. Myers was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity. His first experience with the military started while still in college. He was a cadet in the Army Reserve Officers Training Corps at the University of Idaho. After resigning his commission in the Army, he accepted a commission into the Marine Corps in 1941.
Myers served a long career in the Marine Corps throughout multiple wars and a wide variety of battles. After completing The Basic School, he would go on to San Diego, then the fleet in the Pacific. Myers traveled extensively throughout the Pacific during World War 2. While assigned to the attached Marine unit on the USS Minneapolis he participated in battles such as Guadalcanal, Tulagi, the Eastern Solomons, Tassafaronga, Gilbert, Marshall, Marianas, and the …show more content…
He effectively commanded Marines and soldiers in a time of chaos and confusion. After being ambushed, the American forces were in a state of disarray and were not taken by surprise. Myers used his skills as a leader to bring together a joint force and mount an offensive to establish their perimeter. "I had no Marine rifle company or unit of any type in my area," he told the Idaho Military Historical Society in a 2001 interview. "So, as I walked toward East Hill, I formed my own combat element from support Marines, such as cooks, truck drivers, maintenance personnel and administrative personnel, recruiting Marines along the way. I ended up with about 50 hard-charging Marines that were raring to go and anxious to get into the fight, and the 200 soldiers at the bottom of East Hill -- 250 overall." Myers was able to effectively lead Marines and soldiers who were not specifically trained as infantryman, and have them inflict heavy casualties on a larger