Medal of Honor recipient Dakota Meyer reenlists in the Marine Corps: “You’ve got to be who you say you are”

U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Dakota Meyer, a Medal of Honor recipient, formally reenlisted in the Marine Corps on Thursday during a ceremony held in the Pentagon’s Hall of Heroes — nearly 15 years after his honorable discharge.

“I believe the Marine Corps is, hands down, the best institution on the planet,” Meyer said following the ceremony, where he raised his right hand and took the Oath of Enlistment for the second time in his life.

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Meyer, a native of Columbia, Ky., originally enlisted in 2006 and served until 2010, deploying twice to the Middle East. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for heroic actions during the Battle of Ganjgal in Afghanistan in 2009.

The morning of his reenlistment, Meyer joined Marines at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall for a physical training event. Among those participating were Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Sgt. Maj. of the Marine Corps Carlos Ruiz, and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.

“I think it’s great that leadership from even the highest levels came out to work out with us,” said Sgt. Brian Ruiz, a motor transport operator who participated in the PT session. “Hearing that Sgt. Meyer is reenlisting is super motivating. He has so much experience and so much to say. It’s great.”

According to Meyer, the decision to return to active service stemmed from a moment of introspection following a visit to a noncommissioned officer course. During a discussion with Marines, one sergeant asked if he should reenlist.

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“I said, ‘Absolutely,’” Meyer recalled. “And afterward, I asked myself, ‘How could I ask them to continue to serve and sacrifice without doing it myself?’”

The question led Meyer to reassess his own path and ultimately commit to returning to the ranks.

"You’ve got to be who you say you are and live by the standards you expect everybody else to live by," Meyer said. "I had to look in the mirror and lay out who I wanted to be, then turn around and assess all my decisions and habits and decide if they were helping me get closer to who I needed to be."

Meyer emphasized that his reenlistment is driven by a sense of duty and a desire to continue serving alongside his fellow Marines.

“Still today, at my age, joining the Marine Corps is the single greatest thing that I have ever done,” he said.