Search the Community

Here is the first of the 2 interviews in our second Stars of the Community Double Feature. This was one of my favorite interviews I've ever done and I really hope you guys like it. I give you DocSpartanO07: DD: "DocSpartanO07, what's the story behind that name?" D07: "Well, back when I created my live account, I went by txdandit911,back when the original Xbox was out. When Halo 3 was released, I dropped the 'bandit' and replaced it with 'Spartan', I pretty much only played Halo, so it fit. The 'Tx' was there because, well I'm from Texas. The O07 was added because the first random service tag Halo 3 generated was O07, I thought it was funny, so on it went and its been my service tag ever since. My first username here was 'TxSpartanO07'. After I enlisted in the US Army as a combat medic, everyone called me 'Doc', so after some suggestions from AD and the other long time members of the forum, the TX was dropped and Doc was added, I also changed my GT to reflect 'doc'. So, pretty much every part of my GT/username has at least some meaning." DD: "It certainly does and that's pretty awesome. There isn't one bit of your name that doesn't have meaning to it . Ok Doc, being a long time member I know you have tons of memories and I've seen you post in SykoWolf's Forum Memories thread some of them but do you have a favorite memory on the site? If not could you just tell us one that really sticks out to you and why?" D07: "Well, my favorite memory? That's a tough one, my time here has been full of great ones. But one that really sticks in my head was while I was deployed to Iraq, I had a really terrible day, lost a soldier that day and had been working for at least 14 hours. I remember walking back to the tiny little room I lived in and just couldn't stop thinking about my day and how out right mad I was at EVERYTHING. When I got to my room, I changed out of my dirty uniform, laid down on my bed, opened up my laptop and logged on to 343i.org, and to my surprise, my username was purple, I only had like 75 posts at the time so I was kinda confused. Then AD chimed in on the shout box and said "Hey, we promoted you to trusted, to thank you for your service to our country". I was shocked, at that moment, AD nor anyone on the forum knew about my day, and at that moment, the thoughts of my horrible day went away. I remember feeling a tear roll down my face when I read what AD said in the shout box, to have someone appreciate what you do, even on a really bad day, when things don't go right means a lot in my line of work. It was that moment when I knew I belonged here in this community. The support I had from AD, SJ, and the other long time members during some really bad times made a huge difference in my life, and I can't ever do enough to repay the community for it. Since that day, I have been around. After deployment I took a break cause I spent lots of time with the family, but popped in from time to time. I will be here till the end, period." DD: "That's incredible Doc. That's nothing short of an incredible story, truly. And just so you know, we do all appreciate what you do. 3 of my best friends are going into the Marines or are Marines so I very big respect for them. And your dedication to the site is uncanny and it's to no surprise that you are a Community Moderator here. Doc what's the biggest difference in the community from now and back then when you joined the site in 2011?" D07: "What's changed? Well, the obvious stuff for sure, looks different here then when I joined, there are way more members, things are a lot different in that aspect. However, to me, it still feels the same. The community has grown, and grown better. There have been some shenanigans in months past, some members not around anymore that I thought would be here forever. But I feel like the community is stronger now than ever. Its an even bigger part of my life now. I've seen the community grow from a small group of buddies that love Halo, to what it is today, and I love every minute of it. Its like having a family that keeps getting bigger. The way some of the members pulled together to help me get this Minecraft server up really shows how close we really are. I've grown also, I love being a Community mod, I'm very honored to hold the position, I'm still surprised everytime I log on and see my name in blue, lol" DD: "What a fine answer . And we love that you're a Moderator too Doc, you do a great job. Now speaking of the Minecraft server you guys just put back together, who do you work with and why go through all the trouble that you guys did to get it back up?" D07: "Ahhh, the MC Server...well, we almost had the thing ready to be opened and the host did a server upgrade and they screwed it up and we lost a month worth of work. I then swapped to a new host and we got right back to work. We felt the project had to be finished, it was a no fail mission at that point. My son, who is a member here, ThomasScott02, wanted to build a server. I had never done one before, so we decided to build one for the community. I thought it would be a good way to show how much I appreciate what the community has done for me. Its my gift to the community. So, I paid up the host for a full year, posted up in the forums asking for some help. As of right now, the people working with me are skummgummigubbe, HaloGeek, ThomasScott02, Azaxx, DoctorB77, Zaguroth, Church, and D-38 Boss. I can't thank them enough for their help and dedication to the project. It couldn't of happened without them." DD: "That's just awesome Doc, really. And I hope you guys get a lot of members to join your server. Now jumping from Minecraft to Halo Wars, I know I know what you plan on doing with it but could you tell everyone else what your plans are for Halo Wars Play Dates and anything else involving Halo Wars on the site?" D07: "Well, I wanted to host a weekly or monthly play date for HWs. It is tough to host a play date every weekend though, with all the kids and work and stuff going on, lol. What I would like to see happen with the play date is gain some demand for it. To be honest, I would like to see more members participate. We had a decent turnout last time, but for it to really take off, there has to de a real demand for it. My plans from the start were to run a few play dates and judge interest on HWs, then at some point, host a competition, something like a simple elimination, games of 3v3, 2 competitors fighting it out and the 3rd player being the host that is just there to observe and judge the contest , and the last man standing advances to the next round of the competition the following week, this would continue till we run out of players, last man wins. Give prizes to maybe the top 3 from the competition. I think it would be fun, and something fresh for the community that hasn't been done before here. But the bottom line is, members have to come to the play dates for it to really get going. It will also take more than myself hosting, If we have a few members in the first round, it will take a few hosts to get all of the matches played in a reasonable amount of time. I believe I will post up soon about the next play date, so stay tuned for another announcement on the forum!! I also have some ideas for a Reach FireFight competition, but that's a whole other conversation, lol." DD: "Another conversation?? Nonsense you're being interviewed my friend! What are your plans for the Firefight Play Date? :D" D07: "Well, I thought about putting on a firefight tournament at some point. I think it would be simple to do. Have 3 competitors and a host that observes. The three competitors play for points. At the end, the player with the most points wins. I come up with these crazy ideas because I like every aspect of halo, and I believe the more we tap into the areas of the games that we tend to forget about, the more fun we will have over all and it will bring the community closer together and offer something for just about everyone. Keeps the excitement of just playing with our buds going strong." DD: "Absolutely, I totally agree with you. It's like we forget about the things we used to play that were fun at the time and we think they wouldn't be fun anymore but if we gave them a try again we'd remember why we loved them. What's your favorite aspect of Halo?" D07: "Well, what got me into Halo when C.E. was released was the story of the Chief. To me, he's one of, if not the best character ever created in a video game. The Master Chief is one of those rare people that when you put him in motion, he will not stop, no matter the cost to complete the mission, period. In the Army, we follow what we call the 7 Army Values, they are Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, and Personal Courage. Among these, Selfless Service is what motivates me, and the Master Chief is the definition of Selfless Service, in all the Halo titles, and all the books, the Master Chief does whatever it takes, and he does it for those around him, he puts himself in harms way for those that cant. Its the same thing that motivates me when it comes time for me to do my job. So, in a nut shell, the Master Chief is what got me so into Halo. When the times comes to do a soldier's job in the worst conditions and situations, you have to fight like you are willing to lose everything to complete the mission, or you WILL fail. I learned that from the Chief, that's how he does it, and it works for me. :)" DD: "And everyone on the site can see your selfless service Doc don't think it goes unnoticed, we all appreciate it for sure. I don't think a lot of people know however that you're in the US Army doing that in real life as well. Can you give the readers a brief history of how you joined the Army and juggled that with life on the site?" D07: "Sorry in advance for the long answer, lol I appreciate everyone's support from the community, you guys are awesome. Lots of times I feel I am unworthy, I'm just a soldier doing my job....the best I can. Well, I enlisted when I was 33 years old. Before I was in the Army, I had had several different jobs, I worked in California for a while building racecars, was a truck driver for a few years, I even did a little time in Law Enforcement in my early 20's. I had lived quite a life and done lots of things, even been a real race car driver, owned my own car and everything. After driving trucks for a few years, work started to slow down and I was feeling the need to do something bigger, as in bigger than myself. Me and the wife walked by a Army Recruiter's office one day in 2009 and I said 'Babe, I should join the Army' and she said 'Go for it'...so in I went and got some info and told the recruiter right then 'Put me in the Army, Sgt. I need to do this' I refused any job but Combat Medic, its all I wanted to be. I wanted to live for others, as so many had lived for me in the past. I had always wanted to join, but real life always got in the way, but I felt it was time to just go for it. I always felt like I owed a debt, my Grandfather served in the Army and Deployed to Normandy during WWII and landed on the beaches on D-Day. He was in an Armored unit and rolled up the beach in a tank, his tank ended up being destroyed and my grandfather was badly wounded, he told me a medic saved his life that day, he told me he never had the opportunity to ask the medic's name, because he got him out of there and ran back into the storm of bullets and explosions to get more soldiers out. My Grandad said he wished his whole life he could just tell that medic 'Thank You', but he never saw him again. This happened years before he married my Grandmother and before my mother was born. So, if it wasn't for that medic, doing his job, no matter the cost. You guys wouldn't have the Doc around. I owe that Medic my life. That's why I serve, that's why I do what I do, to give someone else what that one medic gave to me. My Grandfather passed away when I was 15, he was 74. He lived a pretty good life, too. Juggling the Army life, a family, and being a part of this community is no easy task. But I love every minute of it. When I first put on the uniform I knew this is where I belong. This is what I was meant to do. I found this Community while I was Deployed to Iraq in 2010/11. And I belong here, I don't think my life while deployed would have been bearable with out this community, and I think I am a better part of this community because of the army. Soon I will be talking with all of you from beautiful, sunny Afghanistan, and I wouldn't have it any other way." DD: "That's a truly incredible story through and through and I hope that everyone who sees this reads that answer fully. You live a very fulfilling life and your wife sounds really supportive of everything you do which is just awesome. You're so ambitious Doc which is a great quality because you don't take it to the point of arrogance. You never feel like you're owed something and that's beautiful. You have my utmost respect. So is there any goal that you wish to achieve here on the site?" D07: "Goals? Um, to not get destroyed on every play date!!! LOL. Seriously though, I don't know where I'll go from here in the community. I like things to be a surprise, being a community moderator was more than I ever thought I would get to do around here. But, if I had a goal, I would like to somehow get us all together in real life for a chance to shake your hands and play some Halo together via LAN party. I think that would be awesome to do like once a year. I can't think of another way that things around here could get any better for me. Its been nothing short of amazing to be a part of this." DD: "Wow that would be ASTOUNDING. Doc, it's really been more than a pleasure to interview you honestly. Can you please give some words of wisdom to our newer members who are reading?" D07: "Well, to the newer members...Welcome to the best Halo Community on the net. Treat others how you would like to be treated. Take your time, don't get in a hurry to make a name for yourself here, respect in the community is earned and that takes time. Be yourself, I promise you we will like the real you better than anything else. Most of all, remember, every Halo title is different and each one had its strong points and weak points, look for the strong ones and you'll continue to love Halo as I have. One more thing, us mods are not here to make your life hard, we are here to make the community the best it can be, for you guys, cause we love the community and its members." That's it guys! That's part 1! I hope everyone who read enjoyed it and now understands Doc a little better. He's a truly great and dedicated member who only wants the best for this site and all members should strive to be like him. Thank you DocSpartan for doing the interview and thank you again for being patient and waiting for it to be posted. Part 2 coming soon.