Combat Veterans | Forged In The Fires Of War

The first unit I was assigned to after enlisting in the US Army was the 109th Quartermaster Company. 109th is a fueler company that is charged with manning pipelines and fuel depots. I was assigned to the pipeline platoon that manages pump stations that transport fuel over vast distances. We learned how to keep the fuel flowing day and night. We also learned how to detect if there was a break in the pipe and repair it when necessary. It doesn’t take a genius to know that too much pressure busts pipes. The same can be said about people. Too much pressure can break a person, but some people take on that pressure and come out the other side stronger and more resilient. 

My second duty assignment brought me to Fort Hood. There I served on the First Calvery Division Honor Guard. One of our tasks was to visit First Cavalry reunions all over the country. One of the assignments brought us to Pierre, South Dakota, where we met a man named Mel Gunderson. He was a Sergeant in the Battle of Ia Drang Valley. The battle was depicted in the Movie “We Were Soldiers,” an adaptation of the novel “We Were Soldier Once and Young.” Mel was kind and radiated the quiet confidence of a man who survived one of the worst battles of the Vietnam War. I looked upon him with awe and did not consider myself worthy of the same veteran status as him. He wouldn’t have any of it. He told me that soldiers do not choose the battles they fight; we only choose to put our lives on the line if called. For that, he said that he and I were the same. He made me feel like family that weekend. I’ll never forget the time we shared in South Dakota. 

The other day while walking the dog, it started to rain. I stopped under an overhang to keep from getting wet. A man was looking for a dry spot and ended up under the same overhang. He noticed my Black Rifle Coffee Company shirt and started to smile. He asked me about the coffee and told me he meant to try it. That quick exchange about coffee turned into a thirty-minute conversation about our military exploits. I didn’t know much about this man. He was at least twenty years older than me. We did have the same service affiliation. We didn’t come from the same place.  But for that thirty minutes, I had a friend, a brother in arms. That is the power of the veteran community. 

During my time in the Army, I had the great honor of serving countless people that had passed through the gateways of hell and came out stronger than even they could have imagined. We came from far and wide. We came from every background you could imagine. We came from every race and creed. United by hardship, sacrifice, and a love for country we formed a brotherhood that superseded our preexisting elegances. These bonds are the reason I’m proud to be a veteran. We are the few that pressure did not break but turned into diamonds.