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From World War II to Iraq, generations of Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine and Coast Guard veterans have had their own personal and patriotic reasons for joining the service.

In honor of Veterans Day, the Journal asked area veterans to tell us why they joined the military, what they experienced and what lessons they have learned from their years in uniform. Here's a sampling of their responses:

BENJAMIN C. BRUBAKER, of Salina

I was 20 years old when I was drafted into the Army in October 1942. I knew it was my duty to my country, and I was determined to serve to the best of my ability.

In December 1944, my company was deployed from Camp Shanks, N.J. We were transported on the U.S. Army transport Brazil, which was manned by merchant seamen. During our journey, the crew of the Brazil would drop depth charges as weapons against the submarines. This would cause the whole ship to shake, which frightened me tremendously. We arrived at the port in Le Havre, France. The port had been utterly destroyed, and I will always remember the carnage that I saw there.

I volunteered to be a replacement soldier for an infantry that was fighting in the Battle of the Bulge. I was sent to the 106th Infantry Division. I was fortunate that I was never sent to the front line, but three-fourths of the soldiers in that division ended up losing their lives. I witnessed a lot of devastation and horror. There were many displaced people, and numerous destroyed places. Everywhere was chaos.

I do have one strong, fond memory. I was at Camp Lucky Strike, waiting to be shipped back to the U.S., and my brother June somehow managed to find me. We spent the day together talking and enjoying each other's company. It was the simplest of things, and yet meant everything to me. I will never forget it.

Greg Simpson, Salina

I had graduated in 1972 from high school and was accepted into college on two scholarships, academic and sports. But during graduation my dad told me I would not be able to take my car my freshman year. So I thought I would show him and volunteered for the draft as the Vietnam War was still going on.

After going into the U.S. Army, I was to be stationed in Seoul, Korea. I had volunteered for Vietnam, as you got $50 more per month for combat duty -- pretty smart huh? I spent a year and a half in Seoul, typing classified documents for evacuation of weapons for generals, with my lowest ranked officer being a colonel. The hours were long and one was expected to be on call 24/7 to write "back channel" messages for any visiting generals of the Eighth Army.

You could not call home as the phone calls cost over $100 a minute. You had neither computers nor cell phones, so you had to write a lot of letters if you wanted to get any mail.

The one thing I learned is tolerance and appreciation of all people. Being 18 and "knowing it all" (along with being invincible), I listened to others who would call the Koreans a slang word -- gook. But then I looked at the definition of that word and it meant "anyone who is offensive to others due to stupidity," and that was me. I was the gook, not them! I totally changed my mindset and loved not only the natural beauty of their country, but the people themselves.

My service in the military assisted me in getting my college degree with the GI benefits. It also allowed me, 10 years later, to purchase my first home with my wife using a VA loan, which requires no down payment. Besides getting paid and having an experience to last a lifetime, serving in the military was indeed a privilege and for that, I am forever grateful.

And Dad won -- I didn't drive a car for two years.

Rick Honeycutt, Hutchinson/Salina

My first name is Ricky, but I have gone by Rick for many years. I have been called by many other "first" names -- private, specialist, sergeant, staff sergeant and sergeant 1st class. Some people say they lost their identity when they were called by those military first names but I say that I gained another identity without even realizing it. I gained the identity of a veteran, a person that has served our country in the military forces to ensure the freedom of others.

I joined the Army just after I turned 19 and reported to basic training a couple of days before Veterans Day. I wanted to be a policeman in my hometown in Iowa, so joining the Army military police was a way to gain experience before turning the required age of 21. My plan was to do three years in the Army then come back home, but after 21 years of active duty you could say that my plan changed along the way.

After the first three years, it came time to make a decision to leave the Army or stay. I was afforded the opportunity to re-enlist and take advantage of going to K-9 school. From there you could say I was hooked. Where else could I get paid to do the thing that I really enjoyed, training and working with dogs? I was able to train police dogs for patrol, narcotic detection and explosives detection as well as being a kennel master. This "job" took me to many places in the U.S., Europe and Asia, and I was able to meet all types of people from different cultures.

I retired from Fort Riley and stayed in Kansas. I was able to get another job training and working with dogs for the Kansas Department of Corrections, once again getting paid to do something that I enjoyed.

I knew the military wasn't for everyone, but I knew it was for me. A veteran isn't just a person who marches in a parade in November. They made a promise to our country to be its defenders. I am proud to be a veteran, along with many others.

Truman Carl Kiltz, Salina

In 1963, I stopped my college education and enlisted in the United States Army. After basic training and advanced individual training, I found myself stationed in the Republic of Korea. Whereas the conditions were bleak, I found the 13 months in Korea to have been an exceptional experience. I was assigned to security for the United Nations Command Post and was fortunate to have met many military and world leaders.

Following my tour of duty in Korea, I was assigned as an infantryman for an Armored Cavalry Unit at Fort Riley. After the mandatory nine months of stateside duty following an overseas assignment, I found myself once again on a troop transport headed across the Pacific Ocean, only this time I was headed for the Republic of Vietnam.

Even this many years later I still get choked up during the playing of the national anthem and any display of our American flag. It annoys me, and others having served our country, to see disrespect for the American flag. But because others have given up their lives to secure freedom for the current generation, I stand back and acknowledge that freedom of speech or freedom of expression is vital in ensuring the future of this country. I just wish that every American would remember that with freedom also comes responsibility.

Julie Rai (Schnepf) Foster, Salina

From about the age of 12 I had wanted to be an emergency medical technician. When I was 19 years old, working a dead-end job, I was interested in seeing more of the world. One day I decided to talk to a recruiter to see what was possible. I knew from the start that if I couldn't get into the hospital corps, I wasn't going to sign up. That was the best decision I had ever made.

After basic training, I left for Great Lakes, Ill. for Hospital Corps School. My first duty station was Cherry Point, N.C., where I was an EMT. While I was there, the troops were called to Operation Desert Storm. Although I was stateside, I felt that I was part of history and making a difference. After three years in Cherry Point, I was transferred to Charleston, S.C., and then I went to a naval hospital in Rota, Spain, doing my dream job and loving the new adventure of being overseas.

When it was time for me to transfer again, I had asked to be relocated back to Charleston. I really loved the area and the command. Over the years and after I left the Navy in 1994, my love for the health care field was never far away. When I got out of the military I had a couple of jobs in the administrative field. I thought about returning many times but raising our daughter was a priority. Now she is in college in nursing school, and I am back, working in the emergency room as a nursing assistant and very seriously considering going to nursing school at the age of 46. A lot of things had changed over the years, but never my love for helping people and trying to make a difference. My 10 years in the Navy were some of the best years of my life. I wouldn't change the experience for anything in the world!

Terry Robins, Minneapolis

Upon graduating from Minneapolis High School in 1965, I chose between a college scholarship offer to play football or to respond to President Kennedy's inaugural address call to "ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country." I chose to heed President Kennedy's call and joined the U.S. Navy. Although I hoped to become involved in naval aviation to help secure an aviation job in Wichita after my service, I was instead chosen to serve in the Seabees Combat Engineers. I served two tours of duty in Vietnam and one in North Africa with the Seabees, where their motto "Can Do" was ingrained on my outlook on life. After my service, I began a career as a licensed electrician. I worked on commercial and industrial projects throughout the Midwest, including the Salina Bicentennial Center. This eventually led to owning my own business in Minneapolis where I have designed, patented and manufactured several mechanical devices that are now used throughout the world. I also, along with my family, designed, developed and operate the Minneapolis Raceway.

Someday I hope to travel to Washington, D.C., to visit the Vietnam Memorial Wall, where several of my Seabee buddies are honored along with 58,000 others of my generation who gave their lives in the service of our country. They served with honor in a very difficult time in the history of our nation.

Joyce M. North, Salina

I enlisted in the Women's Army Corps in 1965. I had to get out on my own, and the Army would provide the necessary things for me to do so. I only got $87 a month, but they gave me food, clothes, housing and medical care. I was a cook in headquarters' mess hall for a year. At Thanksgiving, we cooked seven huge turkeys and 30 pies. The orphans came to eat it, and a lot of guys came to our mess hall because they thought we had better food.

As a cook, we would start at 3:30 a.m. and get out at 1 p.m., or work 11 a.m. to 6 to 7 p.m. We took one week to cook for meat, one week for vegetables, one week for salads, one week for desserts and one week for supplies and KP.

This may not be as exciting as a combat history, but I would recommend military service for anyone who wants to be a mature person.

Sid Sizemore, Salina

When you grew up and graduated from high school, it was assumed you would join a branch of the military and see the world. Serving in (the U.S. Army) in so many different countries with varying cultures, along with meeting a vast array of people from so many different lands, my life has forever been changed. I have brought death to those referred to as enemies of our nation or our allies. I have watched proud young Americans take their last breath, still believing they were right and just in the actions leading to an untimely, yet honorable death. With all I have seen and felt, in a heartbeat I would serve again.

To my friend and comrade Irving Medina, who passed as we fought on a battlefield far from home, who dined with my wife and daughter, he gave his life for freedom and the American dream, even though he was not yet a citizen of a nation which still argues over borders. He fought with honor, pride and with the cries of battle all around. He kept his balance, standing up right for a dream and the right to live it.

Serving for more than 20 years of active military was my reward for living in the United States. My list of heroes is long. This Veterans Day I pay respect to all who served and still serve. The free air you breathe today is a gift from God but defended courtesy of the U.S. military.

Corinnea Davis, Downs

I enlisted in the Army Reserve in August 1980, not once thinking that I would retire with 22 years and seven months of continuous service. I was one of the few "co-ed" trainees at Fort Jackson, S.C. My first job in the Army was as a clerk/typist, which I did for three years. I cross-trained to become a supply clerk and stayed in supply throughout the rest of my military career.

I was in units in Michigan, Missouri and Kansas. I've seen the uniform change from olive drab to camouflage (retired before getting the scatter pattern). The biggest change was from peacetime to mobilization. The weekend before Sept. 11, 2001 occurred was my unit's drill weekend, and I was getting everything ready to go from Missouri to Kansas. Six months later, the first group of soldiers were sent to support Operation Iraqi Freedom. Before I retired, I helped another three groups get ready to be shipped overseas.

I am proud of the uniform, the country in which we are so very lucky to live and the ability to fight for the right to keep that freedom.

Sidney D. Terry, Salina

My parents had 13 children, and I was number four. We were farmers in Jonesboro, Ark., on 114 acres of land. My two older brothers had enlisted in the Air Force, and they sure looked sharp in uniform and always seemed to have money, which I didn't have.

In April 1955, when I was 18, my oldest brother sent me a bus ticket to visit him at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Miss., for a week. My brother was a cook and took me to the dining hall for a meal. I had never seen as much good food in my life, and I chowed down.

Back on the farm, I daydreamed about that dining hall chow and money in my pocket, and I felt compelled to check it out myself. On June 6, 1955, I became a member of the U.S. Air Force.

I traveled to Little Rock to the induction center and to Lackland Air Force Base for basic training, which in three months taught me discipline, how to budget my fortune and how to get along with other people. From there was technical school and then six tours of duty in foreign lands (retiring as a master sergeant).

I have no regrets for my military life, and I would urge our youth today to seriously check it out. They may like it, and if so they should give it a try.

Virgil Bush, Solomon

On my (17th) birthday, I enlisted in the U.S. Navy, with my mother's permission. I took training to become a storekeeper. I worked in the supply room and was eventually promoted to storekeeper 3rd class and moved up to the payroll office.

I requested sea duty and in June 1943 was sent to Tampa, Fla., where I was assigned to the U.S.S. Phaon, (a battle repair ship). On the ship, my main assignment was the ship's store, where I sold cigarettes, candy, toiletries and items needed by the crew. I also kept an inventory of all the equipment aboard ship.

We were sent to the Pacific, arriving at Funafuti in the Ellice Islands. We were there nine months repairing many of the landing craft used during many of the invasions. On June 9, 1944, we joined the fleet headed for the invasion of Saipan. On June 24, we had a near-miss when an enemy plane dropped anti-personnel bombs near the starboard side of the ship. Two of our shipmates were killed and 11 were injured.

I was discharged October 23, 1945. I served five years and 23 days, and I never regretted a day of it. I am now 87 years old and am still in relative good health.

Blase Sibilla, Salina

I joined the U.S. Coast Guard at the end of World War II. I was 17 and was discharged in 1946, after one year of service. I stayed out three months and was unable to find a job, so consequently I joined the Army. I was stationed with the 7th Infantry Division in Korea. I served about two years and then was advised by my uncle to join the U.S. Air Force, as it was becoming a separate service. I attended several medical military schools and trained to be an independent duty technician, treating casualties from the Korean war. I was in for 11 years of active service, and then switched my service to the Air Force Reserves.

While attending school, I was called to active duty during the Vietnam war. I served two more years on active duty, with one year overseas. I was treating war causalities, as well as treating orphans in several orphanages. When I was deactivated, I went to reserve status and retired in 1972. I served in three different services and had three tours overseas at different times.

I was available whenever I received the call.

William D. Siebert, Salina

To be truthful, I never considered enlisting, probably because the guys I ran around with were not doing it. I turned 18 in 1942 and was drafted in July 1943. I'll always remember my mother saying that she did not see why I had to do that, because they would never take a skinny, 125 pound kid. I had to show her my orders when I came home from the physical, and she was really upset.

In July (1944), we landed on Omaha Beach and walked inland and spent the night in pup tents in a field. We started going out and picking up bodies. We would get map directions from headquarters and go find them and take them to one of the cemeteries for processing and burial. I was shocked to find that we also took care of the German dead.

When the war ended, we were in Czechoslovakia, maintaining a road block just down the hill from one being worked by a Russian unit. When we first set up at our position, we went up the hill to see what they would do. Their attitude was not good, and we did not go back. I don't know what they did up there at night, but we would hear gunfire and yelling.

In November 1945, the area we were covering was given to the Russians, and we started for home. In December 1945, we were in Le Havre, France, waiting to load on a ship for home, and on Jan. 8, 1946, we were unloading in New York. I had my discharge on Jan. 16. That was the fastest the Army moved during my service.

Marion E. Lattin (as told to Marti Wagner), Downs

In November 1944, I was working for the Metz Packing Company, hauling groceries in the rural area of north-central Kansas.

I left his job and was inducted into the U.S. Army at Fort Leavenworth. From there, I went to Camp Hood, Texas, where I was given 13 weeks of training. From there, I went to New York and the Queen Elizabeth for three weeks transportation with 20,000 others to Scotland.

From there, the troops were sent to LeHavre, where mud and six-man tents awaited. After relieving troops near Bastogne, the 80th Infantry, 317 Reg., A Company moved into the Hurtgen Forest area as rain, fog and poor visibility hampered movements in the freezing weather conditions. Because of this, all types of supplies were scarce. Frozen German casualties were removed from their foxholes and Allied troops moved in. During this time my feet were frostbitten. On the way to find a medic, I fell and injured my knee.

Eventually, after rough conflict, the troops moved farther into Luxembourg and Germany. Conditions were deplorable. When a kitchen service could be set up, leftovers, if any, were given to German children. I considered the best time of service to be driving a truck delivering groceries to nearby troops.

I thought I was destined to be sent to Japan. However, I was sent to New York, back home to Kansas and the discharged. Now, at age 91, I am a member of VFW Post 1366 and flag bearer for community parades.

Charlie Stephens, Salina

In 1946, at the age of 17, I joined the National Guard. I started my military career as a private but soon began to move up in the ranks. After attending numerous Army academies, I was promoted to sergeant, 2nd lieutenant, 1st lieutenant, then captain. I was company commander in the National Guard for seven years here in Salina.

In 1968 my National Guard unit was activated. I was a major at the time and was given a choice of staying in the U.S. or going to Vietnam. I volunteered for Vietnam, because I felt that it was my duty to my country. Before deployment, I trained at Fort Carson, Colo., to prepare me for jungle combat. I was deployed to Qui Nhan, South Vietnam as a combat engineer and was assigned as depot engineer to oversee the oil and gasoline tanks at the compound. We were constantly fighting fires after North Vietnamese saboteurs blew up the oil tanks. It was during one of these firefights that I was recommended for and received the Bronze Star for heroism. The Vietnam war was a horrific experience, but I never regretted volunteering. I felt it was my duty to do so.

Once I returned from Vietnam, I was assigned to Fort McPherson in Atlanta to assist with reassignment of returning Vietnam veterans. I retired from the military in 1979 as a lieutenant colonel. While in Vietnam, I became a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Post 1432, here in Salina. I also became a member of the Disabled American Veterans. I qualified for membership in the DAV related to skin cancer that I developed after daily exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam. I served as state commander of the VFW in 1992-1993 and state commander of the DAV in 2004-2005. I remain active in both organizations. I value the experiences I had in the military and if I had it to do over again, would not hesitate to repeat it. I am proud and honored to have served in the U.S. Army and am proud of those who now serve.

Donald L. Nofsinger, Salina

I always wanted to achieve a college education. I knew if I wanted to achieve any goals, I would require a detailed plan for my future. Most individuals go directly to college. I could not afford it, so I took another route. My plan was to join the Air Force for a four-year tour. Then I would go to college on the G.I. Bill.

After I graduated from high school, I enlisted in the Air Force and completed basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas. My first orders were to report to prelanguage school at another base. I completed the six-week program. My next challenge was to choose a language of interest. I chose Russian. I figured the Russians would eventually take over the world, and I would then be able to ask for something to eat. The Air Force issued orders for me to report to Syracuse University, School of Language, in Syracuse, N.Y.

After graduating, my orders were to proceed to Elmendorf Air Force Base in Anchorage, Alaska. I was assigned to the USAF Security Service. I completed six weeks of training, then was reassigned to an Air Force detachment unit on St. Lawrence Island in the Bering Sea. This would become my home for the next year and a half.

I completed my plan and retired from the General Electric Company after 33 years of service.

George Dalme, Minneapolis

My dad served 30 years in the army. In 1968, he received orders for his second tour of duty to Vietnam. So we moved to Salina and stayed in the Schilling housing complex for military families during war. It seemed like two to three times a month, officers from Fort Riley arrived to notify family members of their lost (KIA or MIAs).

I turned 18 and joined the Army with a friend, Mike Workman, telling ourselves we'll go to Vietnam together and watch each other's backs. If things go well, we'll do 20 years of service. Maybe with us doing our share, we might be able to slow down the visits from Fort Riley officers. During my tour I found out a lot about myself and the guys I served with. It took me 35 years and a few heart attacks to forgive myself. Me writing this is my way to ask to be forgiven by God and my loved ones.

Sherwin Stielow, Russell

I joined the Kansas National Guard in Russell in 1951 at the young age of 17. I was a farm boy and at the time I would have had a deferment from the draft as an only farm son. The Russell National Guard unit had been alerted for possible deployment to Korea. I had many friends in the unit and wanted to deploy with them. At the time this unit was part of the 35th Infantry Division. As it turned out the Oklahoma 45th Infantry Division went over. I served with pride in the Reserve and National Guard from 1951 to my discharge in 1994.

Leroy C. Klema, Wilson

I was 18 in January 1943, a senior at Wilson High School. Although drafted, I finished the school year. I was in a U.S. Navy CB (construction battalion). Sometime after boot camp, a group of us were sent to Camp Endicott in Rhode Island, where we joined to USN 28th Battalion.

We landed on Omaha Beach on June 9, 1944. It was an adventure getting ashore. Although the beach was secured, it was a large minefield, and they didn't find everyone. We left Omaha Beach to Cherbourg (France), where we lived in barracks-type buildings in an old quarry that was an old slave labor camp. The word "lousy" has lost its impact. I was on a work detail to drag out and burn the straw mattresses that were full of lice. Do they ever bite! Just about drove me up the wall.

Tom Haas, Salina

Having been taught rudimentary airplane maintenance and minor inspections at Sheppard Field at Wichita Falls, Texas, we arrived at Salina's Smoky Hill Army Airfield in October 1942. The base was a staging (area) where new airplanes were flown in, and we (the ground crew) were assigned to ramp and runway duty to do limited service on the maintenance of these planes.

The winter of 1942-43 was noted as one of the colder ones, and there was little shelter from wind and weather on the airplane runways. We were supplied with what we called "gorilla" suits, which was a large coat and pants (of) fake synthetic sheepskin. It was so bulky, you had to remove it for any close-quarter work.

In May 1943, I was sent to Tinker Field at Oklahoma and then to Grand Island, Neb., and a year later to Kearney (Neb.) for the rest of my service, so I never got out of the Dust Bowl.

Darrell Baird, Salina

I enlisted in the Army Air Force on May 13, 1943, in Leavenworth. I went to Louisiana to begin my cadet pilot training, but after a few months I asked to be transferred and went to Florida to gunnery school on a B-24 (bomber). I came to Smoky Hill (Army Airfield) in Salina and was assigned to the 97th Bomb Wing, flying B-29s. It was here that I met and married my wife.

First my squadron was sent to Giebelstat, Germany to show the U.S. air power. Then (we) were sent to Japan for 30 days.

After a week at home from Japan, we were sent to Alaska for six months for survival training. We spent many hours of cold weather flying, playing cards and snaring rabbits. If the temperature dropped to 60 degrees below zero, we could not fly, but there were not that many days that the temperature was that low.

When my enlistment was up, I chose to get out of the service and return to my home in Hunter and go to barber school. I opened the Broadway Barbershop at 659 S. Broadway, which I operated for 35 years. It is no longer there.

James W. Baughan, Salina

I graduated from boot camp, was sent overseas and landed at New Caledonia. As we were transported to a tent camp, I met my brother Bill. When I was transferred to the 3rd Amphibian Tractor Battalion, here came brother Bill to "B" company. After loading different ships, we laid off Saipan for some time. After spending 45 days on Iwo Jima, I was sent back to Maui in the Hawaiian islands for regrouping and (preparing) to land on Japan. I got leave to go see brother Bill (who was wounded on Guana). We saw one another five different times in the Pacific Ocean.

Doug Mackey, Abilene

I come from a small town in upstate New York. After high school, I kicked around a few jobs with no hope of a career. I had made the mistake of getting married too soon and felt trapped. Two of my older brothers had gone into military service, one in the Air Force, the other in the Army. I knew that if I was to enlist, I would have a chance to see more of the world. I had a yearning to travel and visit places I had only read about. I talked with recruiters from both the Air Force and Army, trying to decide. The Army recruiter said I could be on my way to boot camp in a week, the Air Force said a month. The Army it was.

I spent the next 12 years traveling the world, with stops in Japan, Korea, Australia, Vietnam, Italy, Holland and Germany. I visited France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Austria and Switzerland. I experienced the lifestyles of all these countries, shared meals with the locals, sampled the cuisines of the countries and met many wonderful people.

I will always have a reminder, as I married a wonderful woman from Holland whom I have been married to for 40 years, who gave us a child who has become a beautiful woman.

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