Joshua Lopez enlisted in the Marine Corps when he was 20 years old. He served a total of 10 years in the military from 2001 to 2011.

“What I found most important during my time in service is the unity that we shared, both brothers and sisters; it was one of the biggest things that we carried out.” 

He has three military-related tattoos:

• A chain going up his arm with a pully and USMC
• His call sign “LoLo” in Japanese
• A horseman, known as “Conquest”

Joshua says he doesn’t regret any of his tattoos because they describe certain things that went on during his career.  

“The chain that I’m rockin’ on the arm represents members that he lost in the Marine Corps and those who were also Navy and were core men. There are 68 chains in total, representing each person I lost in total.” 

He says before he joined the military, Joshua had a lack of trust in people — But while in the Marine Corps, he built a brotherhood and sisterhood with other people in the military. Joshua says that was a key factor that changed his life around. 

Although he was medically released due to his PTSD, he says he would’ve completed his 20 or more years if he had the option.