Veterans Day honors active and inactive military personnel
Steven Wetherill is one of many HPU students who have served previously in a branch of the military. Photo by: Melia Sigmon
By Alexis Ancel, Staff Writer //
Veterans Day is right around the corner, a day set aside to honor those who have served in the military. It falls on Nov. 11 every year and holds a great deal of meaning for not only those who have served, but for their families and loved ones who are affected as well. This holiday hits close to home for many members of the High Point community.
Veterans Day has a different significance for some than others. Senior Steven Wetherill, age 26, is a current High Point University student who is also a veteran having served for six years in the air force as a military police officer. For him, Veterans Day is not a day to be honored for his service, but rather a time to honor those who have lost their lives for our country.
“I didn’t care for it while I was in active duty because I didn’t feel like a veteran. I’m learning to appreciate it more now, but I’d always rather turn the spotlight somewhere else,” Wetherill said. “I don’t like the attention. I look to the people with their names on the walls or a headstone at Arlington. They are the true heroes.”
The reasons for entering the military can vary for each person, whether it be patriotism or a desire to better themselves. For some people, such as Wetherill, family tradition plays a role.
“My whole family was military; my uncle, my grandfather, his father. It was an easy decision. It just felt right,” Wetherill said.
While it is well established that being in any branch of the military is no easy feat, there are many aspects of it that people outside do not typically understand. As Wetherill explained, physical capabilities are a smaller portion of training compared to the mental endurance required to make it through.
“People think military training is all physical. They don’t understand the mental aspect of it. Military training is 90 percent mental, because if you can convince yourself to do that last push up or run that last half mile, there’s nothing you can’t do,” Wetherill said. “If someone in the military is told they can’t do something, they will make it a priority to do it.”
Wetherill also pointed out some lesser known issues and difficulties of being in the military such as flaws in the Veterans Association health care system, particularly concerning mental health. Post traumatic stress disorder is an inner struggle that many veterans face on a daily basis and is an issue that needs to be recognized so it can be dealt with.
“Addressing the veteran health care system is just as important as helping veterans achieve an education. We tend to feel ashamed or vulnerable when we get out, and don’t want to open up because the military trains us to push our feelings aside,” Wetherill said. “We need to figure out a way to not let veterans feel embarrassed about post traumatic stress disorder and push for mental health reforms.”
These systems are currently in the process of reform in an attempt to improve educational opportunities as well as the benefits and health care that veterans receive, but are still problems that continue every day.
Despite the difficulties and sacrifices of being in the military, Wetherill still considers it something he would recommend to anyone.
“The military gives people a new sense of self-motivation and a new level of maturity,” Wetherill said.
Though Veterans Day is designated to honor military veterans, it also serves as a time to honor our fallen troops as well as those currently in active duty whose sacrifices protect our country’s freedom.