United State Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Samuel J. Mortimer was meritoriously promoted to the rank of gunnery sergeant July 1. Mortimer is a 1995 graduate of Chugiak High School and a veteran of Operation Freedom and the Battle for Fallujah. He is currently serving as a Marine Corps drill instructor at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego. He is the son of Sandi and Tim Mortimer of Chugiak.