One Rio Grande Valley veteran turned social media influencer is making his mark by sharing his experiences in the Army.

Ben Allen Alvarado is putting a spotlight on serving our country.

"I just liked the experience of it, I loved that it was something new." Alvarado said.

Alvarado is from the Los Fresnos and Olmito area. He graduated in 2015 from Los Fresnos High School and shipped out to basic training in September of that year.

"It definitely turned out the way it was supposed to, and I'm very grateful for that happening the way it did." Alvarado said. 

Going into the Army wasn't his first choice, but it's a choice he doesn't regret.

"That versus college, I feel like I learned a lot more, life wise in the military, like social skills, how to lead different people, to be part of a team," Alvarado said.

Alvarado was in active duty from 2015 to 2019 and after, he was in the Army Reserves for about a year and a half.

During his years in the Army, the idea of making videos on YouTube came to mind.

"I started doing kinda like gym content or whatever, and it died off almost immediately. It didn't really gain traction whatsoever," Alvarado said.

The thought process began and that's when the lightbulb turned on, and he thought of showcasing his career in the Army.

Alvarado filmed some of the training they were doing and it was a hit.

"So I figured, let me keep making Army stuff, people liked it. So it went from regular clips of training to informative, talkative videos," Alvarado said.

Alvarado says he also wanted to create this YouTube page for those with an interest in coming into the Army.

"There really wasn't a whole lot of videos out there, this was like 2015," Alvarado said.

Alvarado took on different topics about everything from veteran services to more serious topics like PTSD, among others.

"We do hit on all of those, you know sensitive touchy subjects as well," Alvarado said.

At the moment, he is up to about 482,000 subscribers on YouTube and about 90,000 on TikTok.

Alvarado says the Valley will always be home.

"Now as an adult, I'm just like I couldn't imagine anywhere else being my home, it's such a community, and it's such a small place that everybody knows everybody," Alvarado said.

Ben Allen Alvarado is made in the 956.