Jeff Schwilk, Founder of the San Diego Minutemen                                     1 Dec 09

Jeff Schwilk was born and raised in Southern California (Orange County). He joined the Marine Corps right after high school and served 21 years as an Intelligence Specialist and Intelligence Chief in a variety of billets and locations around the world. He also served as the Security Manager for various senior commands and held a Top Secret security clearance for his entire career. He participated in the planning and conduct for both the Gulf War in 1991 and the war with Iraq in 2003.  Schwilk retired in 2003 from the 1st Marine Division G-2, Camp Pendleton, where he served as the Intelligence Chief for three years.  He retired as a Master Sergeant (E-8) and lives in Vista in northern San Diego County.

Schwilk joined the California Minutemen in May 2005 after hearing and reading about the growing immigration crisis in California and America. He participated in the first-ever border watch operation in California in July at Campo and spent 16 days with other patriotic, concerned Americans assisting the Border Patrol to guard the East San Diego County border.  By the end of the operation, he had risen to the #2 position at CMM.  Jeff helped plan and organize the next operation in Sep 05 in Jacumba.  In October 2005, as CMM was winding down, Schwilk and fellow Minuteman Jeff Mundt decided to start their own local, independent Minuteman group to focus on interior immigration problems and political activism.  And so the San Diego Minutemen group was born.  SDMM did its first border operation with 7 patriots in mid-October 2005. Since then SDMM has expanded its membership to over 800 concerned citizens in San Diego County. Schwilk has been back to the border dozens of times to monitor the U.S. Government’s efforts to secure the border. Some fence building has occurred and the National Guard has helped the Border Patrol in guarding the border, however unchecked crossings and smuggling in San Diego County are still occurring daily. Large quantities of drugs and human cargo are still brought through the open border. Much work is yet to be done if we are ever to have true border security, a secure homeland, and a controlled, humane legal system of immigration.

In January 2006, SDMM focused its operations on the employers who hire illegal aliens and draw them here in the first place. Since then, Jeff and his group have been working tirelessly to shut down the illegal day labor sites in cities all over San Diego County. In April 06, they were able to shut down their first site, a large dirt lot in a residential neighborhood in Fallbrook where loitering day laborers were harassing school children nearby residents. Through rallies and deterrence operations, they have also greatly reduced the problems with a large site at a popular shopping center in Vista and also the large day labor site in east Oceanside. In June 06, Jeff and some brave patriots infiltrated Congressional candidate Francine Busby’s meeting with illegal aliens and caught her on tape saying those now famous words, “You don’t need papers for voting”. Five days later, after much media scrutiny, she was defeated by Brian Bilbray in the special election for the 50th District, who has since fought tirelessly on the illegal immigration issue.

Jeff works full time fighting against illegal immigration in the San Diego Region. He works with law enforcement and politicians in the local area and assists on local political campaigns for Patriot candidates.  Jeff is of German and Spanish descent.  He worked 3 1/2 years in a car wash with hard working Mexicans in the early 80’s. His best friend in school was half Mexican. He speaks some Spanish and Korean.

Jeff considers himself a Constitutional Conservative, but politically moderate. He has been a registered Independent since 1992 and has supported and worked for candidates from all political parties who believe in the rule of law and a secure homeland free of unchecked illegal immigration.