Nick Anderson was born in Minnesota in 1989 and moved to Grand Haven, Michigan three years later. He had given thought to joining the military before 9/11 and, during his senior year of high school, decided that he wanted to be a Marine. Nick swore…

Sarah Anderson was born in 1990 in Muskegon, Michigan, and lived in the same house for her entire childhood. Anderson graduated high school in 2009 and immediately joined the Marine Corps since she disliked the mundane environment of the classroom,…

Scott Baldwin Scott joined the Army National Guard in Oklahoma in 1986 and took ROTC training at Oklahoma State University. After a number of years on inactive reserve, he was activated, worked as a trainer at Fort Benning, Georgia, and was later…

Eric Beard is from Lansing, Michigan. He enlisted in the Army after college and trained in Ft. Drum and Ft. Polk, and spent time in Ft. Drum before going overseas. He served as an E4 in Afghanistan for 10 months. He and his unit patrolled villages…

William Becker was born on June 6, 1988 in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. He joined the United States Marine Corps and worked as an observer. William served two tours in Afghanistan, both in the Helmand Province

Tom Bilecki served in the Army National Guard in Afghanistan as part of Operation Enduring Freedom. He did two tours, one in 2004 and another in 2012. He was stationed at Forward Operation Base Frontenac 26 miles north of Kandahar. He served as an…

Jeff DeLange served in the Army for a total of five years as an infantryman and toured in Afghanistan and Iraq between 2006 and 2009 where he conducted patrols and later helped with the turnover of operations to the Iraqis.

Gary Doublestein was born on November 15, 1952, in Plainwell, Michigan. In early 1970 he enlisted in the Navy, and in June reported for basic training at Naval Training Center San Diego, California. He went to Hospital Corps School at Balboa Naval…

Richard Doyle was born in Vermont and drafted into the US Army as he finished college in 1969. He trained as an infantryman and served in two different battalions in the 1st Infantry Division before being reassigned to the 101st. He served with D…

Jim Flowers was born in Muskegon, Michigan in 1963. After he graduated high school, enlisted in the Air Force and did a tour on a strategic air command base on Guam. Back in the US, he completed college while still in the Air Force, and then spent a…

Jim Flowers was born in Muskegon, Michigan in 1963. After he graduated high school, enlisted in the Air Force and did a tour on a strategic air command base on Guam. Back in the US, he completed college while still in the Air Force, and then spent a…

Kyle Herring was born in Frederick, Maryland on October 11, 1987, but grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He enlisted in the Michigan National Guard when he was 17 years old in spring 2005 and drilled during his senior year. In January 2006 he…