Cameron McFee never considered himself a military person.
He was a self-proclaimed drama nerd and a state champion debater, and his only knowledge of the military was through films. But three weeks before Sept. 11, McFee had withdrawn from his first term of college, enlisted with the U.S. Marines and was 35,000 feet in the air headed for Iraq.
It wasn’t about the traveling. McFee didn’t care so much for getting in shape, either. His family life was normal, he said, and he wasn’t searching to find himself. For McFee, like the drama club he was involved with in high school, the military acted as a surrogate family.
“Joining the military was a blessing in disguise for me,” McFee said. “I had never ran three blocks in my life before. I had always viewed the military like the film Full Metal Jacket.”
Now back from war and enrolled at Portland State, McFee is still involved in theater. Working with the Defunkt Theatre company, he recently wrapped up a production of The Communist Dracula Pageant. The play centers around the last Eastern Soviet countries to fall and the 1989 trial of a Romanian dictator for crimes of genocide.
He is currently enrolled in 24 credits this term and working as a stagehand on the upcoming Haroun and the Sea of Stories, which premieres this Friday. He said he gets through this busy schedule of studying and putting on plays with one tool–his coffee cup emblazoned with an image of Tigger from Winnie the Pooh.
“The cup is an extension of me,” McFee said. “I have to have coffee in it at all times. How else would I get through the day?”
In addition to his work on Haroun, McFee is working on Garden Party, also a Defunkt production. He is playing a small role and is the play’s stage manager. From working the lights to running the soundboard, his duties include everything that makes the show go.
Born in Canada, McFee moved to Albany, Ore., with his family at 13. His parents divorced shortly after the move, and McFee said he found solace in theater.
“Theater can provide a very family-oriented atmosphere,” he said.
Beginning his sophomore year at West Albany High until graduation, McFee said he was involved in every school play. From acting in small-bit parts to controlling sound and lighting, he stayed active in the club with what he says was an average of 60 to 80 hours per week of work.
“It was a phenomenal investment,” McFee said. He also found time to capture a state title as a debater during his senior year. “I’ve always had a fondness for arguing.”
Like his time investment in theater, McFee said he wanted to prove himself in the military by putting in as much work as he could.
Eventually, with 36 people serving under him, McFee would leave the military in 2005 as a sergeant.
“It was a pretty astronomical rise,” McFee said.
“The military gave me the opportunity to expand my family, as has theater,” he said. “I wouldn’t recommend it for everyone, but it’s the best decision I’ve ever made.”