HONEA PATH, S.C. (WSPA) – “Every day I think about being a SEAL… But I hop on a tractor, I get on the bush hog, I put my earmuffs on, and I just get out here in nature,” said Johnny Holcombe.
He’s a Navy SEAL Team Six veteran.
“At 15, I started running, doing push-ups, pull-ups and swimming,” Holcombe told 7NEWS. “And that’s all I did for two years.”
After high school, he enlisted.
“We had 122 guys in my class,” he recounted. “17 of us graduated.”
And became a Navy SEAL.
“SEAL stands for sea, air, and land,” Holcombe explained. “So what that means is the ocean, the air or the land is how we infiltrate. And we can do that through all three of those environments to get in and actually do a mission.”
A job Holcombe said he truly misses.
“It was absolutely the coolest job I think a guy could have,” he shared. “I mean, jumping out of planes and skydiving, diving in the ocean and shooting is just awesome.”
But it wasn’t without its many challenges.
“I was going probably 200 days plus a year for 15 years,” Holcombe said.
He served three platoons on SEAL Team One, then was recruited to SEAL Team Six, where he was surrounded by the best soldiers.
“We’ll go in, and we do planned-out clandestine missions. You won’t believe the stuff that goes on all over the world, like right now, that people don’t put out there,” Holcombe explained.
He served 20 years in the SEALS and operated for 15 years before shore duty.
“My joints, my elbows, my shoulders, from just beating it,” Holcombe shared. “It’s just… It’s brutal on your body.”
He said his transition into civilian life after being a SEAL was a struggle.
“It’s just that the military takes such good care of you that I had no idea how to create my own direction,” Holcombe explained.
That was until one day, his wife had a suggestion.
“She said, ‘Have you thought about going anywhere around land?’ Holcombe said. “And I said, ‘If you want to grow some stuff, I’ll try to figure it out.’”
And since then, some 15 years ago, life for Holcombe has been pretty sweet.
“I would have never thought 20 years ago I would be raising blueberries, you know?” he laughed.
Holcombe said he’s found his new calling. One that is a labor of love.
“You have to keep finding something that’s growing to give you a passion,” he explained. “There is an end to it, and you just have to live in that end.”
With the first year of business under his belt, Holcombe said big things are on the horizon for the farm in Honea Path.
“In 2027, our goal is to do a domestic winery here and to do wine and weddings out here,” Holcombe said.
It’s a vision not made possible without his loved ones.
“The support of my family has been incredible, especially my wife,” he said. “She knew that I needed an outlet.
Who let Holcombe live out his life calling; Twice!
“It was an honor,” he finished.
Johnny Holcombe, thank you for your service.
To learn more about Holcombe’s Blueberry Farm in Honea Path, click here.
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