Marine Corps 1st Lt. Leslie A. Morrison, son of Leslie A. Morrison of Fairfax, Va., recently completed a two-week bilateral training exercise with Albanian military forces while assigned to the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, based in Camp Lejeune, N.C. The unit is currently aboard the USS Iwo Jima. Morrison is a 1994 graduate of Fairfax High School and joined the Marine Corps in May 1997.
Air Force Airman 1st Class Shawn J. Kaplan has graduated from basic military training at Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas. He is the son of Harry Kaplan of Boca Raton, Fla., and brother of Jamie Kaplan of Fairfax. Kaplan graduated in 1994 from Lake Mary High School in Florida and received a bachelor's degree in 2000 from the University of Central Florida, Orlando.
Army 2nd Lt. Gregory J. Merkl has graduated from the U.S. Army Ranger School at Fort Benning, Columbus, Ga., with authorization to wear the distinctive Ranger Tab. Merkl is an infantry officer assigned to the 82nd Airborne at Fort Bragg, Fayetteville, N.C. He is the son of Robert and Maureen Merkl of Ashleigh Road, Fairfax. The lieutenant is a 2002 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, N.Y.