Interviewing a Veteran

By: Emma Smith

The 8th grade English students just finished a project on different wars. At the conclusion of the project, three veterans came and spoke to the class. Miss Hiller did an amazing job organizing this experience for her students.

Ryan Doran served in the Marines and is a veteran of the war in Iraq/Afghanistan. He decided to go into the military after the events of 9/11 that occurred during his senior year of high school. The Marine's boot camp is thirteen weeks long and was one of the hardest parts of Ryan’s experience. He was an Aircraft Mechanic. He spent a total of 14 years in the military with multiple tours overseas. He says, "the hardest part is coming home and 'turning off the switch' that is forced on in war.” Since Ryan’s return home, he has enjoyed building extreme pride from the Marines through recruiting for the Corp.

Jon Treece served in the Army and is a veteran of the Vietnam War. Upon graduating from Bowling Green State University, he enlisted in the Army. He spent three years in the military and one year overseas. His team’s job was to search and destroy in the jungles of Vietnam. When he was not doing his job, he was known for winning over the hearts and minds of people in the area. He said, “the things you learn cannot be learned any other way.”

Tom Daley served in the Eighth Air Force and is a veteran of World War II. In roughly 1945, Tom was sent to Berlin for his first mission. On the ship over, he was seasick everyday and lost ten pounds on the nine day trip. He is currently 92 years old and is one of the few that not only served during World War II, but is still alive. The most rewarding part of his experience was knowing that he helped end the war against Adolf Hitler.

This was a great experience for 8th graders to receive and they thoroughly enjoyed talking to these war heroes.