Evelyn L. Bruce

My life needed to change, so in 1995 I enlisted in to the United States Air Force. I was 19 years old and knew if I didn’t move out of my small Kentucky town I would be a bound to factory work. Unsure of what was to come, I kissed my family good bye with the hope of seeing the world and getting a great education for my sacrifice. Little did I know that my sacrifice was going to be greater than missing my birthdays and holidays with my family.

Fast forward 6 years to 11 September 2001. I am married to a military man and we have a 1 year old son. This is my third assignment and we are stationed in Las Vegas. That morning began like all others. We turned on the morning news as we always did about 20 minutes or so before we left for work. The world was forever changed that day. The unimaginable happened and we watched it unfold. For a minute or two I was detached from reality. I turned to my husband and I asked, “What is the military going to do?” He looked at me with a look of confusion and said back to me, “You mean what are we going to do?” My heart sank. I looked at my baby and cried, all I could say was, “I didn’t sign up for this I just wanted to get an education!” My husband on the other hand was ready for battle and there I was feeling betrayed and confused. In 1995, I never thought of war as being part of my plans.

I think back to all the ads on TV and the billboards you come across as you drive down the street. They didn’t make any mention of war all you would see was happy faces or Jets with the phrase, “Air Force a Great Way of Life.” Looking back I should have asked then what do you mean by that? In my mind getting out of the crazy environment that I grew up in and giving me a chance at a better life was doing just that. Still today you see the different ads, the one that gets me is of a young man in civilian clothing the next picture is of the same man in a military uniform followed by one of him in a doctor's coat. To any young man or woman these images are enticing especially if you want an education but can’t afford one. They even pull in those who may be trying to better themselves by getting out of a detrimental environment. Whatever the case maybe these ads do not tell you the whole truth. It’s not just about pride for your country. The military member suffers and so does the family. They need to be honest and up front about the sacrifice you are going to make for the sake of seeing the world and getting an education.

Six months after 11 September 2001, my family was split three ways. My husband was sent to Korea for a yearlong tour, I was sent to Turkey for a 15 month tour and we had to send our son to live with my mother who he had only met one time before. That was one of the hardest things I have ever done.

During my 15 month tour in Turkey being a medic meant I had to work first hand with the wounded and casualties of the war. Although I didn’t go to the front lines I saw the aftermath and I will never forget all the young men that crossed my path. Were they under the same impression as I was that all they had to do was to learn a trade to keep the military up and running and their reward would be a free education, or do their 4 to 20 years while getting an education along the way? If I would have been told before I joined that war is a possibility then I wouldn’t have been in as much shock when it was time to handle business. Some of you may think I was naive - so be it, but I know I’m not the only person who saw serving my country as a means to an education, not a 21 Gun Salute.

Do you think if these advertisements were closer to the truth people would still join the military?

Photograph Credit:
Sabrina Segal