"Top" a Proud Marine: MSgt. Willie L. Collins Biography

“Corporal Collins then heard enemy fire, and it sounded pretty close. Both of the injured men were on stretchers with ropes attached to the medic aircraft, so the rescue party quickly hoisted them aboard. The enemy fire was nearing, so the medic rescue jet had to take off quickly. Since Corporal Collins was not aboard yet—he was still in the water—the crew promised him that they would return for him.” The above is just one paragraph from the many riveting story lines that tell the biography of Master Gunnery Sergeant Willie L. Collins, affectionately known as Top by his crew. This is a story about an American family who happens to be African American, and it is spellbinding, interesting, and a feel-good story that needs to be told.