Veterans Archives: Preserving the Stories of our Nations Heroes
In a world where storytelling has been our link to the past since the days of cave drawings, there exists a timeless tradition. It's the art of passing down knowledge, and for Military Veterans, it's a crucial piece of their legacy. Join us on the Veterans Archives Podcast, where we dive deep into the heartwarming and awe-inspiring stories of those who served, no matter when or where.
Here, Veterans get the chance to be the authors of their own narratives. Through guided interviews in a relaxed and safe environment, they paint their experiences with their own words and unique voices. The result? A memory card in a presentation box, a precious gift they can share however they please.
But that's not all. These stories find a secure home in our archive, a treasure chest of experiences for future generations to explore. The best part? It's all a gift to the Veteran – our way of saying thank you for their service.
Tune in to the Veterans Archives Podcast, where history, heroism, and heartwarming tales come to life.
Veterans Archives is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Please visit our website for more information. www.veteransarchives.org
Veterans Archives: Preserving the Stories of our Nations Heroes
Daniel May's Journey: From Bloomington to the Battlefield
Ever wondered what it was like to be a latchkey kid with a passion for mechanics and end up serving in the Vietnam War? Join us as we take an intimate look at the life of Daniel May, a Vietnam War veteran from Bloomington, Indiana. Daniel recounts his early years influenced by his father's World War II service, his transformative training at Fort Leonard Wood and Aberdeen Proving Grounds, and the grueling conditions he faced during the Tet Offensive. Through Daniel's vivid storytelling, you'll gain a profound understanding of what it means to serve and the lasting impacts of being a Vietnam veteran.
Moreover, this episode tackles the seldom-discussed but critical issue of toxic exposure and veterans' health. Daniel opens up about his struggles with the aftereffects of Agent Orange, including a prostate cancer diagnosis, and the frustrating interactions with the VA. Hear his candid reflections on the importance of mental health support, maintaining bonds with fellow service members, and the surprising camaraderie that can be found even in the digital age. This heartfelt conversation underscores the strength and resilience of veterans, making it a must-listen for anyone interested in the real-life experiences of those who served.
My name is Austin Crouch, here with Veterans Archives. Today is Thursday May 16th at 1500, and I am here with Daniel May. Sir, how are you?
Speaker 2:I'm doing good. Appreciate you being here.
Speaker 1:Yes, sir, I appreciate your time. We'll start off the podcast today with just a very general question when are you from, daniel? Where do you call home? Right here in Indiana, born and raised corn fed born and raised corn fed Hoosier okay and if you lived in Bloomington your whole life yes, sir what was life like as a child for Daniel?
Speaker 2:um, I guess you'd have to say for that time period I was a latchkey kid mom and dad both worked that's fair and that's fair.
Speaker 1:I see a lot of people um.
Speaker 2:I got into trouble by myself oh yeah, that's fair.
Speaker 1:I know a lot of people like that yeah um, so did you grow up just inner city or did you ever have any experiences that maybe have pro like propelled you towards a life in the military, or how did that work?
Speaker 2:Dad was in the Army during the Second World War and I grew up out in the county. Oh okay, I'm a ridge runner.
Speaker 1:Oh, okay, that's cool. What unit did your dad serve with?
Speaker 2:85th Engineers, I think, or something like that. Oh, that's cool he drove a deuce and a half for the kitchen. Oh okay, very cool Mess mess. Yes, been a while, yeah that's exciting, that's super interesting.
Speaker 1:I come from a long line of veterans as well, and my grandfather was in the Navy during World War II and I enjoyed listening to his stories and stuff like that quite a bit, so that's super cool. So in the military you have a long story. What interests you in the military, or did anything interest you in the military? How did you end up there? How did?
Speaker 2:I end up there. Well, my dad was a mechanic for a local dealership here in town for like 35 years and my first engine was a lawnmower engine. So I pursued automotive repair in high school a year and a half and then after high school about two months, uncle Sam called. And then after high school about two months, uncle Sam called. So I ended up going down and talking to a recruiter and to get the MOS I had to enlist for that extra year to pay them back for my training basically. So that's what I went to school for. After basic at Fort Winterwood they sent me to Aberdeen Maryland Proving Grounds. It's cold on that Chesapeake Bay in the wintertime. Let me tell you, you go out to work on a deuce and a half or a five-ton and you turn the switch on and you hit the starter and it goes ah, you're not working on that truck today. No, sir, right, that's how it works.
Speaker 1:I never heard of that before. I never heard of the Chesapeake, the base near there, but I have heard of Fort Lawson in the woods. What was your experience there like, because my grandfather went through there.
Speaker 2:At Waterwood. Yeah, they called that Lower Korea. What years were you enlisted September 10, 66 to September 9 of 69.
Speaker 1:So right in the midst of the Vietnam War, then yes, pretty much yeah.
Speaker 2:I was there during the Tet Offensive. I was there May of 67 to May of 68.
Speaker 1:What was it like being present for the offensive?
Speaker 2:I don't like the sound of RPGs.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I don't know many who do right.
Speaker 2:The locals shooting players at you while you're on your guard post. That was the only round I fired the whole time I was there.
Speaker 1:Really.
Speaker 2:A bunch of big tires off them, earth movers, the scraper things. That's the only round I fired. I fired it into that and I blew the candles out and went to bed. No more flares on my post.
Speaker 1:Right, there you go. Yeah, you know, I feel like there's a lot of. I feel like, as time goes on and, like you know, we distance ourselves from the Vietnam War, I feel like more and more information is kind of lost to the general public about just how that war went and how it was. So I know that we always like to say when I was in the military that we stand on the shoulders of giants, right Like the guys that came before us, and we met a lot of Vietnam War vets with the first ID and they talked a lot about their experiences there and you know, it was different.
Speaker 1:It sounded like a whole other world compared to what we were like in Afghanistan.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so where were you stationed at while you were in? Did you go to multiple different posts in Vietnam, or did you stay at the same one? How did that work out?
Speaker 2:Well, I went over out of Fort Bliss, Texas, with 51st Light Direct Support. There was 151 of us in the whole company including NCOs and officers. We left out of there, went to San Diego, sailed underneath the bridge, took us 15 days by ship to get to Nam, plus 24 hours on board ship in blackout conditions before they'd let us come ashore. I was stationed with the 2nd Maintenance Battalion. Had the same 1st Sergeant there that I had in AIT at Aberdeen.
Speaker 1:That's very cool. I didn't realize that you guys would have switched leadership that far down the chain. Oh yeah, yeah, that's super cool. It was never like that for me. I went with the guys I trained with right into deployment. Yeah, that's super cool. I was never like that for me. It was. It was, uh, I went with the guys I trained with um you know if my company and my first sergeant included, and everyone over as a good as a battalion.
Speaker 2:So well, they split us up, they shipped us. They're all out from different places after ait. Really, some went straight to nom from there for maintenance and others went well. A handful of us went to Texas together and then I was with the 2nd Maintenance Battalion there in Vong Tau. They said you can't have PTSD in a non-combat area, but they're full of bull and they denied that. Right right VA has because it's a non-combat area right but uh, but that don't keep charlie from trying to blow up the pol dumps at the airport.
Speaker 1:Right rpgs over your head right and that's where you guys were defending. Was the problem, assuming all the fuel depots and stuff like that? Correct, correct, right, right? That's wild. Yeah, I think that's really. I think that's the curse of time. I think there's been some other incidences where we've been in situations and we've been into conflict areas that weren't combat zones when bullets were flying, so I think that's pretty.
Speaker 2:Well, if there's a situation, not to cut you off but, in an area like that. If you're in country, you are in a combat area. I don't care what the VA or what the president says or whatever. They can get the rosy red cheek.
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, I understand that right. Nothing like someone telling you how it's really going from halfway across the world right?
Speaker 2:You don't see the president walk down the street during a riot, do you?
Speaker 1:No, definitely not, oh hell no.
Speaker 2:Not going to work?
Speaker 1:No, definitely not. So you were there. You were defending an airport and doing maintenance, I'm assuming. On those other things, Right. When you left, and you left in 69?
Speaker 2:68.
Speaker 1:May of 68,.
Speaker 2:I come back stateside. I still had 18 months to do. I said they were going to put us as close to home as possible. Guess where I ended up Not close to home, not close to home. Fort Meade, maryland. Fort Meade, maryland, fort Meade, maryland. With the 6th Armored Cav Division.
Speaker 1:Is that back towards the Chesapeake Bay area South?
Speaker 2:of there. South of there, it's about 35, 40 minutes south of Baltimore.
Speaker 1:Really Okay. And when they stationed you not close to home, what were you doing there?
Speaker 2:I became an armored crewman on a sheridan, really yeah, that's cool.
Speaker 1:Yeah, uh, did you ever it was, and it was just target practice and stuff like that did you get? Were you still drilling at that time even though you were on your way out the door, or how'd that go?
Speaker 2:uh, yeah, they trained us for it. A lot of the guys had already been to fort Knox, kentucky, for training and they pretty well run us through what they had been taught and then the opportunity come up to go TDY to Fort Knox for that training. But a lot of those people that were there at the time, that was their basic but a lot of those people that were there at the time. That was their basic. Well, basic people and people that's been in for a while, don't mix.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah definitely not Our platoon sergeant at Kentucky. He learned real quick.
Speaker 1:You know, bringing back the conversation to basic. I can't imagine getting out of uh like basic into basic training and then going straight into combat and going straight into, like you know, no, I didn't do that.
Speaker 2:I went to aberdeen for training first and then texas for six months, and then I'm gone by ship yeah general hm walker. That was his last trip. That's awesome. They're gonna bring him back and scrap him yeah, that's crazy.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm blessed, you know, like I said, because I had time to train up and feel, you know, I felt pretty secure when I went over there.
Speaker 2:So it was a good feeling to have.
Speaker 1:I felt bad for the guys who didn't have that experience like we did.
Speaker 2:Right and I had to have. Well, I got the training from the guys that had already went to Fort Knox for that training on the Sheridan. Plus I went there TDY and got retrained basically for it and I came back from that and with people rotating out most of them were us or national guards so they had a two-year thing where I was enlisted for three so regular army and nobody liked me because I was regular army only one out of the whole platoon yep, so you got a little bit of ribbing for that huh oh yeah, yeah, there's a little bit of a, there's a little bit of guys, tell me one day.
Speaker 2:He said, hey, you know what you are? And I said, no, what am I? And said you're a dud. I said explain please. We never know when you're going to go off. Well, stand your ground, hey there you go.
Speaker 1:Yeah, stand your ground. I like it.
Speaker 2:I guess with the Sheridan deal. Like I said, after I come back from Fort Knox for the TDY they were training on the Sheridan they asked for a driver Due to the operating facilities on that particular weapon. You had to have a security clearance and a five-digit military combination lock to get in it.
Speaker 1:That's wild, yeah. Would you say that was overkill, or would you say that's not enough?
Speaker 2:On the security clearance. Yeah Well, at the time time, you know, I had a clear record at the time. I've had a little few incidents since then, but anyway, uh, yeah, you had the security clearance to get in the looming thing what was it like?
Speaker 1:uh, what was it like being part of the crew of a tank crew. I've seen like a lot. I think the movie that rings in my head is like that Fury movie that came out a long ago. And it seems like it's quite the thing. You really have to be in tune with each other, right?
Speaker 2:to work and do those things together. Oh yeah, you all have to know, the whole crew has to know that particular vehicle and everybody has to know how to do their position. Uh, as a driver, uh, with the security clearance, I was a platoon sergeant driver and when we weren't on the track I had to carry a field radio to keep him in communication, and that thing always pounded me in the back and I've paid for it ever since.
Speaker 1:Now we're assuming a field radio that's like the huge green one right that you carry around in a big backpack. Yeah, it weighs 26 pounds. Yeah, the one that makes you a giant target With one battery.
Speaker 2:It weighs over, I think, 37 pounds with the double battery pack on it yeah, that's awesome yeah, and no belly strap, just shoulder straps. And walking or marching, that sucker's all point.
Speaker 1:The edge of it was always stabbing you in the back what do you think they uh figure out how to design these things? Do you think they ever put the uh the man that's going to carry it in mind, or how does that work?
Speaker 2:oh, I definitely wasn't designed for the person carrying it yeah, we can't.
Speaker 1:We can't make it easy or comfortable. Right, all right, all right, so you go. So you're back, you leave NOM, you go to Kentucky, you work in your tanks and then you're done with the military. Right, where do you go to?
Speaker 2:from there. Well, I came back home and went back to work at RCA here in town.
Speaker 1:I was still in business.
Speaker 2:And what is RCA? It's made TVs and radios.
Speaker 1:Oh, okay.
Speaker 2:Radio Corporation of America.
Speaker 1:Oh, very cool, and this was just a local business that you applied for and found it. Did you have interest in working in electronics? No, Because you were in maintenance no.
Speaker 2:No.
Speaker 1:Well, how did you like it? And you worked there until you retired.
Speaker 2:Oh no, I ended up on an indefinite layoff.
Speaker 1:Mm-hmm.
Speaker 2:Well, that don't pay the bill. So I started looking for a job, had no money to buy gas to go look for a job and ended up taking out two gasoline credit cards pay one one month and one the next. That's how I made it for my job interviews and finally got on at IU here in Bloomington.
Speaker 1:Really.
Speaker 2:Indiana University and I worked for building services for 22.8 years before my back gave out. Wow.
Speaker 1:That's really cool. I also worked there, so I think that's kind of interesting, did you so? Did you, uh, when you it sounds like you've had quite quite the experience right and I know we've we've talked a little bit off air about like, how to keep moving and everything, and um, I find it I find it a conversation that needs to be brought up is about where did you find the resilience and the drive to keep pushing when you think things aren't going super great? My children, your children. That's a good answer. Man. That's just the best answer there is right. Yeah, that's good, that's 100%. And you pushed through and you made it happen right.
Speaker 2:So it wasn't from our youngest daughter you just met I. I wouldn't. We wouldn't be having this conversation.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah well, we're blessed. Then right 100, so well, that's cool. So we worked at IU, we've, and we retired when our back gave out.
Speaker 2:And where does?
Speaker 1:that where we find ourselves at now. Yes, yeah.
Speaker 2:So what, what, what are the? What's the struggles of life for Daniel these days? At the end, um well, I've been diagnosed with uh prostrate cancer from Agent Orange and I'm dealing with that.
Speaker 1:If it hadn't been for this burn pit stuff, I wouldn't have got that. Can you explain that in greater detail? As far as the burn pit stuff, it means you wouldn't have got the agent orange can you go into detail on that? I'm not sure how to go into detail well, I guess I'm saying is like so do you? Are you saying that you got the?
Speaker 2:you think you were exposed to agent orange from the burn pit well, I wouldn't say it was from the burn pit, but, um, you know, you're, you're in country and that stuff's being sprayed all in the forest all the way around you and you're working on the vehicles and it's constantly raining and they come in wet with that stuff on it dripping on you, dripping in your face and down your back and the crack of your butt.
Speaker 1:Cross-contamination is a serious thing, though, right, and like. I've seen videos or pictures of Agent Orange and what it does to an entire jungle, right, and I can't imagine that that can't be good for you.
Speaker 2:Well, a point on this Agent Orange that most people probably don't know unless they've really researched it. Agent Orange that most people probably don't know unless they've really researched it. Three of two of the places that I was stationed, which was Aberdeen, maryland and Port Meaden, maryland, are storage and testing for Agent Orange and so you may not know about is our home state of Indiana. It is stored in this state and tested and the general public doesn't know anything about it To this day still, as far as I know.
Speaker 1:I'm so vastly ignorant in the subject right.
Speaker 2:Like I don't know very much about, like the, I just heard this recently on. I don't know very much about the research I just heard this recently on YouTube Veterans.
Speaker 2:Info Tap. Well that, and it gave a list of the states. One of the channels I was looking at gave a list of all the states that it was tested and stored, and whether it was stored in Texas and whether it was, uh, stored in texas I have no idea, but I was stationed at port bliss there at that time with the 151st, our 51st direct support.
Speaker 1:sorry, not the 151st so what do you think? The purpose of having it stored nowadays is like what do you think of stole? They think they just can't get rid of it, or how does that work?
Speaker 2:how do they get rid of it? That's a good question all right, you can't spray it, you can't burn it you can't dump it in the ocean, or I hope they're not dumping it in the ocean right maybe that's why all the fish are crawling out of the ocean yeah, yeah, I mean, it seems like it's really nasty stuff. It is, yeah, so it seems like that's been a that's been a real struggle um for yeah, I mean, it seems like it's really nasty stuff.
Speaker 1:It is, yeah, so it seems like that's been a, that's been a real struggle. Um for sure, I mean, I can't imagine right, um, and like you're dealing with the va, with that, correct?
Speaker 2:yes, uh, they done denied my psd, like I said before, because I was in supposedly a non-combat area. But that's a bunch of bull. They hit not only the POL. The only good thing that happened is those RPGs. The French brought them over there and they've been there for 70 or 80 years and half of them don't work. They stuck in the concrete around the, the fuel storage plus. They hit one of the two-story buildings that was I think it was a 401st transportation really and killed a couple guys on the first floor or second floor. I'm sorry, had five days to come back to the States.
Speaker 1:That's tragedy. Yeah, it seems like that happens, unfortunately, to a lot of people. That's terrible. So, going on to working with the VA and getting the health care that you need and all these things, and getting the health care that you need and all these things, are there any things that you want to share? As far as to other people who might be suffering from these same inflictions right from, maybe, their time, I feel like a lot of times veterans learn from other veterans better than they can learn from just themselves. Right, and if you know any information that maybe could help other people identify me where they're at, anything like that, anything at all.
Speaker 2:Perseverance.
Speaker 1:Perseverance.
Speaker 2:Keep trying.
Speaker 1:Yeah, 100% right, never giving up. Yep percent right, never given up. Yeah, yeah, I think that's uh. You know, that's one of those things that only uh.
Speaker 1:I feel like that word has more weight to it when it's said in some, in a position that you find yourself in right, you know because I can say you know, persevere, persevere all you want right, and then knowing that, like, it means a whole lot more coming from a man in that situation. Um, you know, and, and, and, yeah, do you do you think that? Um, do you think that there's service members today that suffer from? You know, we talked about PTSD and everything. Do you think that there's anything that service members today can talk about with their mental health issues? I think that there's a stigma around mental health, and there always has been.
Speaker 1:So I'm curious to see how the stigma was back in the day in Vietnam. Right, Because that's what, 20 years past, 45, you know.
Speaker 2:You just deal with it, keep going, keep going 45, you know, so you just deal with it keep going, keep going. And you know, I didn't. I didn't get signed up with the va till like 97 I think something like that. Uh, I've been, uh, told them what happened and where I hurt and all that junk, and they put, put me on ibuprofen and painkillers and an inhaler. I have to say I think it's been a pretty well uphill battle but, like I said, perseverance, perseverance.
Speaker 2:You just got to keep going and drag one foot behind the other until you get to the top yeah, that's real, that's real tough I have uh, uh, recently got my uh award for the agent orange but, like said earlier, if it hadn't been for this burn pit thing, I don't think it would have ever happened. I don't know how they get rid of the body waste now, but we burn it in half of a 55-gallon barrel with five-gallon diesel fuel on it and you stand in there. That's part of your detail. You smell that and worked all around all them, trucks, everything deuce, and a half up was diesel.
Speaker 2:And to this day. Diesel smoke cuts my sinuses off. I have to breathe through my mouth. So we're on the road. I have to tell if I'm not driving. I have to tell the driver to back off or go around yeah, that's. That's very interesting, um I can't, I can't stand to be behind a diesel. Yeah, very close anyway.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and as far as how they get rid of this waste stuff. I mean, a lot of things change in military, but a lot of things don't right. Well, I don't know as far as 2011 or 2012,. We were still burning stuff in the burn pit as diesel fuel.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Right, that's kind of how that worked out. It kind of seems like that's the way it went, better or worse.
Speaker 2:My concern was with that time I went to VA or Rattaboose in Indianapolis. That doctor didn't know what SD-1 drag clean fluid was. That's kind of scary that a doctor don't know that.
Speaker 1:And then I know we talked about this a little bit off the air, but could you go into greater detail on on what that is and if that's something that pertains mainly to, like the job that you did in the military or like maybe there was other people that might have been exposed to that as well in their jobs and their mls's in the military?
Speaker 2:well, we use the sd dry, dry clean a one dry cleaning fluid, to clean all the parts on the trucks and stuff, especially the wheel bearings, that you have to inspect them to see if they're any good, or you have to put new parts in your direct contact. No protective clothing. You're not only absorbing that fluid into your body, but you're also smelling the fumes from it when you're sloshing around washing the grease off the parts.
Speaker 1:That's just interesting that I know of so many instances where we find out that things are poisonous or cancerous or carcinogenic 20 years down the line and the damage is already done. Asbestos was another big one.
Speaker 2:Oh, yeah, yeah, and I remember seeing commercials for that when I was a kid. You know Well all the schools you're talking about asbestos, all the schools I mean I'm 70, 70 years old and all the schools and all the schools and. I'd say 90% of the buildings at IU were all wrapped with asbestos insulation and when they needed to repair the pipes and stuff, that insulation just got thrown in the trash and I had to deal with the dust.
Speaker 1:I had to deal with the dust. So when I first got to Fort Riley, kansas this conversation isn't about me, but I find it interesting when I and so when I first got there I was stationed into a barracks, a holding barracks. They didn't have any open and those barracks, once they deployed, were tore down because they had asbestos in them.
Speaker 2:Right. Well, all of them, at the time I was in the military was world war ii perks and they probably didn't even think about asbestos. Plus the ships for the navy people. You know, those were all wrapped in asbestos now that's wild, I wonder why we're all dying of cancer right, yeah, truly truly, you know why we're all dying of cancer, right? Yeah, truly, truly, you know, not sitting in a plush room with somebody waiting on you and asking what you want to eat, do you need? Help?
Speaker 1:yeah, no doubt so well, that's interesting. Um, so we know we mentioned a little bit about your daughter, um, and stuff, and I think family is huge in our lives and, um, what you say anything about your family and how important that is or the dynamic that that plays into your life and to being successful in the things that you do.
Speaker 2:My youngest daughter has been a very helpful person.
Speaker 1:She I don't know whether I should say that or not- she is a cancer survivor herself, that's so she knows deep down right.
Speaker 2:She can understand that in only a way that I'm assuming that she can all right what you're going through, correct? She's been a big support um, man, that's wild.
Speaker 1:I uh, I'm. I think that I'm super grateful that you have her right and to be able to be there together with you so, um, what was the? We don't have to talk about this any further if you don't want to, but going into it, uh, if you want to. Well, how? How long was her diagnosis from yours, and were you there when she? You know you're present when she had it too right, supporting her?
Speaker 2:um, well, no, I wasn't supporting her. She lived north of here at the time and but the time she's been here for the last 15, 16 years, she's been, uh, very supportive. And now, as they put this 69 in and you're running a hundred mile an hour between here and Indianapolis, she does most of the driving cause. I can't handle it.
Speaker 1:Right.
Speaker 2:It's too fast.
Speaker 1:Right, right, no, well, we're blessed Um, we're absolutely blessed to have family like that. Those will take care of us when we need them. So, man well, is there anything and we can round this out? And I appreciate your time. But I just kind of want to close with if there's anything that you would tell anybody that would be looking forward to going into the military, any advice, and any advice that you would tell anybody getting out of the military, looking into the civilian world. It's kind of a two-part question there. I wanted to see if you had any advice well, I would say go into the military.
Speaker 2:If you're going in, do go in to try to do what you like. Doing like electronics, or myself I've done mechanics repair, you know, working on vehicles. And as far as getting out not telling everybody that's getting out of the military they have to go join a legion or the VFW or any of the other species. You need to talk to others.
Speaker 1:Yes, sir, and I think that's very interesting because until I started this project, I had never set foot into a VFW or any place that I could learn from or talk to anybody else, and I remember long periods of my life where I was real lonely. When I first got out, I was real lonely and I didn't have anybody that I felt like I could relate to or talk to, and I feel like those places could have been a wealth of resources in that situation. Could have been a wealth of resources in that situation. Yeah, I am curious to see if there will be a new generation in those buildings and stuff coming up as the global war on terrorism and stuff dies down.
Speaker 1:And you know we spent 20 years in Afghanistan. That's a large amount of people, you know. It's not as much as World War II vets or Vietnam. I'm curious to see what will happen with that. I have high hopes that it will still live and continue on and that people can find solace there with other veterans, right, 100%. Well, daniel, if there's nothing else I want to say, I appreciate your time, thank you for your service, sir, and thank you for taking the time to talk to us at Betterdance Archives. I think your story is awesome and I really appreciate it.
Speaker 2:It's pretty cool.
Speaker 1:Yes, sir.
Speaker 2:I've never done a podcast.
Speaker 1:Yeah Well, there you go, right, don't make me a YouTuber now.
Speaker 2:Yeah, there you go.
Speaker 1:You're a blessing. There you go Right. So that made me a YouTuber now.
Speaker 2:Yeah, there you go, your blessing Anyway. Yeah, find the buddies, ex military buddies and talk to them.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Even if you have to write a letter. Yeah, yeah, stay in contact with someone.
Speaker 1:Yeah, a hundred percent Um, and that's. You know, one of those things where I feel like, if you don't, if you don't, um, and that's you know, one of those things where I feel like if you don't, if you don't, sometimes it'll be too late, Right? So I know that's a tough thing to go through. So well, thank you, sir. I appreciate you. All right, thank you.
