Reunion 2026
Our 34th Annual Reunion in November 2026
The reunion is already well into the planning stage. We will once again gather at the Marriott Residence Inn
Rosslyn in Arlington, VA, from 08-12 November. Contract negotiations are completed and details are provided
below. One thing we are still working is finding an appropriate venue for our Birthday Dinner on
10 November. As I reported in our newsletter last December we were not happy with the Sheraton
Pentagon City and are exploring the possibility of a new dinner venue. That is not an easy task.
Finding a place that can host our crowd and keep costs to a level we can afford is a tough process
in the Washington, D.C. area. Some hopeful news is that the Sheraton is under new ownership.
That may be something that works in our favor as Debbie Crist, our negotiator extraordinaire, works
to get this done.
As anyone attending our reunions the past few years is well aware we are at the whim of HQMC in
scheduling our reunion agenda each year. We’ll be setting up the agenda for this year in roughly
the same manner as always but also be prepared to address unexpected changes caused by HQ
last minute changes.
Here I want to make one more heartfelt pitch to our post Vietnam 2/9 Marines. Please consider attending.
We need you, and I am certain you will find you are most welcome and will make life long friends even if we are
from different eras.
Ok, here are the details for our host hotel, the Marriott Residence Inn Rosslyn on North Oak Street in Arlington:
Room Charges: Cost is the same as last year - $149/night plus tax (currently around a total of 14%).
Parking: Normal parking charges, $35/night, are NOT controlled by the hotel. There is a private
outfit that controls the parking garage. However, the hotel has managed to once again get us
a 50% discount on parking so the rate will be $17.50/night. There is a height limit in the garage
so if you have a really large vehicle (truck, van, etc.), you might not be able to get into the garage.
Hospitality Room: We will have our hospitality room on the first floor of the hotel during the
entire reunion. There will be free beer, water, soft drinks, and finger food provided by the
2/9 Network at no charge. The room will be open each night until the last folks head to bed!
Jam Session: The jam session with the Gallatin Canyon Band is scheduled for 09 November
commencing in the hotel at approximately 1500 hours (3:00 p.m. for you scuzzy civilians).
We’ll also be conducting our annual “Hot Damn” toast during the session. For those
not familiar with that we’ll define it at the reunion. This session has proven to be a great
hit during our reunion and you want to be sure to be there. Ben Hernandez and his guys
do this at no charge in memory of his father, Dan Hernandez, a great 2/9 Marine who
passed in a car accident in California a few years ago. Refreshments and light food
will be provided by the 2/9 Network.
Breakfast and WiFi: Your room rate includes breakfast daily and WiFi access.
Room Reservations: The Residence Inn has once again provided us with our own
reservation page exclusive to our reunion. I strongly suggest you use that page to
make your room reservations. There is a phone number provided below that you
can call but that usually results in at least 2 or 3 issues I have to resolve with
the hotel. The exclusive link provided usually does not have issues. If, however,
the link tells you no rooms are available please email me ASAP and I’ll take
care of it with the hotel. We have finite numbers of rooms assigned each night
for the reunion based on our contract and if that number is exceeded you
might get that note. No real problem as the hotel will increase nightly rooms
available as soon as I notify them.
Reservation Link: You may have to copy and paste this link in your web browser
to make it work. The PDF version of the Battalion Runner should allow you to
just hover your cursor anywhere over the https link and click on it to get you to
our page. Be a little patient. Sometimes the link takes a few seconds to kick in
correctly and take you to our information.
https://www.marriott.com/event-reservations/reservation-link.mi?
id=1777673547811&key=GRP&app=resvlink&_branch_match_id=1136770144566335769&_branch_referre
r=H4sIAAAAAAAAA8soKSkottLXTywo0MtNLCrKzC8p0UvOz9UvSi3OyczLtgdK2ALZZSCOWma
KraG5ubmZubGpibmFoaFadmqlrXtQgFpdUWpaKlB3Xnp8UlF%2BeXFqka1rSnoqAP8ZwNheAAAA
&inventoryMissing=true
The phone number to use in case the link does not work is 703-812-8400. If you call make
sure you tell them your reservation is for the 2/9 Marine DC Reunion.
Reservations must be made no later than 16 October to get our guaranteed room and parking rates.
USMC Wreath Laying Ceremony: Dependent of the whims of HQMC we will be leaving our
reunion hotel to head for the Iwo Jima Memorial (Marine Corps War Memorial), beginning
around 0900 on 10 November. Vans will shuttle our people there and back but it is only
about a 20 minute walk from the hotel for those who are NOT like most of us, frail. If the
Corps screws up again, as it has for a few years, and conducts the wreath laying ceremony
on other than 10 November, we’ll adjust our schedules as necessary. For those who have
not experienced the full ceremony you do not want to miss it. The Commandant,
Sergeant Major of the Corps, Marine Band, Marine Drum and Bugle Corps, and the
Marines or 8th & I, make the experience unforgettable. There is also usually a noted guest speaker.
Birthday Dinner: We WILL have a Birthday Dinner commencing at 1800 hours on
10 November. The issue is where but it will happen. Once we know exactly
where we will be I’ll be sending information either in the next Newsletter or via
a separate email asking everyone to tell me how many will be attending the
dinner in your party. We must provide that total number to the venue several
days before the dinner.
Visit to The Wall: As we do every year following the Birthday Dinner we return
to our reunion hotel and gather for our annual trip to the Vietnam Wall to see
our brothers and say hello. This usually happens around 22-2300 hours. This
time may sound strange to those who will be coming to the reunion for the first
time but you will find it makes quite a difference to be at The Wall with our brothers
at late night hours when there is little commotion.
TRANSPORTATION WILL BE PROVIDED FOR ALL OUR OFFICALLY SCHEDULED
EVENTS AWAY FROM THE HOTEL.
SEE YOU THERE!!!!