Aiming to do his part for homeland security after the 9/11 terror attacks, Garen Marshall enlisted in the U.S. Navy when he turned 18. For five years, from 2003 to 2008, he served as an explosive ordnance technician, disarming explosives both in the United States and abroad during two deployments to the Middle East.

All the while, he knew he wanted to go to law school eventually.