Master Sergeant Julia Watson-Carlson
United States Marine Corps (Retired)
Master Sergeant Julia Carlson is from Provo, Utah and enlisted into the Marine Corps November 7, 1994. She was trained as a Heavy Equipment Mechanic and then stationed with 7th Engineer Support Battalion, Camp Pendleton, CA from June 1995 to February 1997. After serving the next three years as an Instructor/Competitor of the Marine Corps Shooting Team in Quantico, VA, she served as a Maintenance Chief for 8th Communication Battalion, Camp Lejeune, NC until December 2001.
After transferring to the Reserves, she served as both an Instructor/Competitor of the Marine Corps Reserve Shooting Team, and as the Peace Time/War Time Public Affairs Officer for C Company, 4th Light Armored Reconnaissance, Riverton, UT.
MSgt Carlson was the first female to graduate the Small Arms Weapons Instructor School before being attached to 3rd Civil Affairs Group. During her deployment to Iraq in 2006 with 3rd CAG, she served as the Public Affairs Officer and worked with Iraqi civil governance, specifically aiding the economic development, education and communication for Iraqi women, by developing and implementing the Iraqi Women’s Engagement Program. She then served as Civil Affairs Team Chief and as the Officer in Charge of the Female Engagement Team under 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade while in Helmand, Afghanistan in 2009-10 before serving with the Marine Corps Civil-Military Operations School in Quantico, VA.
Her marksmanship and Marine Corps highlights include: over 40 National individual and team titles/awards to include 4 history making championships by being the first woman to ever win since the induction of the competition in 1902. She was named the Female Athlete of the Year for the Marine Corps in 1998, meritoriously promoted to the ranks of Corporal and Staff Sergeant, and has previously held 3 National Service Rifle records. She earned her Distinguished Rifleman Badge in 1997 and her Distinguished Pistol Shot 2014 and is one of 4 known female Marines to become double distinguished.
During her time as a member of the Marine Corps Shooting Teams (active and reserve), she has taught marksmanship skills to active and reserves around the country, youth, civilian groups, law enforcement, and other branches of the military as well.
She has her BA in Hospitality Business Management from Utah Valley University, co-founded and operates, “Doc and Gunny’s”, a service effort to support Veterans and First Responders with healing through the arts. It was through Doc & Gunny’s mission that Julia partners with Wolf Pact to support Hope on the Hill’s similar mission to help prevent Veteran suicide. Julia also served as the Mentor Coordinator for the Veteran’s Treatment Court for 4th District Court in Provo, Utah from 2019-2023.
In partnership with ACME Rifles, Julia currently is an ambassador for the Veterans Family Brigade to further youth shooting sports.
She is married to Dan Carlson and together they have nine children and seven grandchildren.