Veteran recalls time in the service, the meaning of the mission

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Veteran recalls time in the service, the meaning of the mission

Most people know the origins of Veterans Day and recognize it as a time to honor and thank those who've served in the United States military. But for those like Ray Boland, one who's thanked for his service, the holiday holds a special meaning.

Boland, who moved to Friendship after high school and now lives in Sparta, was one of the featured speakers at Gundersen Health System's Meet the Author series on Monday at the La Crosse hospital. The 30-year Army veteran who served two tours in Vietnam spoke a little about the book he penned, "When the Bugle Calls," but devoted most of his half-hour talk to share "the perspectives of an old soldier" and what he feels Veterans Day is all about.

Veterans, Boland said, make up just 6 percent of the population - a small number of people who've pledged the Oath of Service to defend the Constitution and obey the orders of the president.

"Those few, rather simple words have placed us in a special category," said Boland, who flew utility planes into remote special forces camps in Vietnam and was awarded a Purple Heart. "I think that with that pledge, we signed an unlimited liability contract with the United States of America. Some have also referred to it as a blank check."

Those who made that commitment pledged to go anywhere they're sent and serve however they're asked.

"We did not choose the wars or the battles or the locations; we did what we could to serve our country," he said.

American military members have served in nations around the world for decades, and in doing so, they've left what Boland calls "the footprints of freedom."

"Everywhere the American men and women of service have walked, they've left these footprints, and they are there to stay," said Boland, who during his career has served as garrison commander at Fort McCoy and Secretary of Veterans Affairs for the state of Wisconsin. "It all began in Europe, so whether it's Germany and Japan and Korea and Vietnam, and more recently, the Middle East. All those places, we have left a permanent impression."

These military personnel are stationed in 150 countries, preserving peace and helping train people there to do the same. Because of that, Boland said, the American people are held in high regard, which is sometimes contrary to the stories heard here at home.

He experienced this admiration six years ago when he and his wife traveled to Vietnam - something he'd resisted for 50 years. But after hearing others who spoke highly of going back, he relented, and he said it was "an amazing experience." Vietnamese people wanted to talk to him and have their pictures taken with him. One particular conversation, however, stuck with him.

He spoke with a young man whose grandmother moved the Houston, Texas, following the war. Boland asked him if he'd like to do the same someday.

"I said, 'How about you? Do you think you'd like to live in the U.S.A.?,'" he said. "He looked me right in the eye and said, 'Sir, everyone wants to live in America.' He was dead serious."

So, what does it all mean? Were the sacrifices of veterans worth it? Boland admits it's a tough question to tackle. But it's even tougher to deny the importance of this century of sacrifice to peace and freedom around the world.

"I think the veterans of the United States of America have achieved a permanent legacy as the greatest ambassadors of freedom the world has ever known," he said. "I can think of nothing in all of history that can even come close to the selfless sacrifices we have made for the betterment of others."