CLARION, Pa. — “You don’t have to wear a military uniform to serve your community.”

That is the message retired U.S. Army Master Sergeant Dave Hartley (pictured above) told students during an assembly at Clarion Area High School to honor local veterans.

Hartley wanted students to leave the assembly and, “know they have it within themselves to serve, that it is not beyond them.”

Hartley created a video featuring Clarion Area alumni and residents who once wore a military uniform; it was set to the song “Stop When You See A Uniform” by Buddy Brown.

To his surprise, a brief Facebook request for pictures produced more than 50 men and women who served their country, nearly enough pictures to cover the three-and-a-half-minute song.

“The military in this country serves the civilian leadership,” he explained. “The military serves to protect and defend the constitution of the United States. It really is about that selflessness for the community.”

According to Hartley, military members call civilians “ma’am” and “sir” because the military works for those citizens, noting that the Secretary of Defense is a civilian position. Still, the amount of respect shown toward the military, especially in Clarion, is always appreciated.

Veterans Wall at Clarion Area High School

He remembers coming back to Clarion after leaving the military and attending the Autumn Leaf Festival parade.

“I saw the VFW bring the flag down the street and everyone stood up.” Here Hartley paused as his eyes focus on his memories of that day. He continued with a slight catch in his voice, “I just started bawling like a baby because that 20 years was worth it. It was worth those 20 years to make sure that we were still free. The ALF parade really drove that home.”

WWII Veteran Dean Lewis attended the assembly at the request of his great-granddaughter. As she stood beside him, her smile revealed her pride in him. Likewise, his smile showed his love for her.

Dean, who joined the Navy the day he turned 17, was on a ship headed for Japan in 1945.

“But, I only got to Cuba when they dropped the big bomb, so they turned us around to come back,” he reminisced. “Then, I got on another ship and got down to South America, and I got out two years after that.”

It was the terrorist attack on September 11, 2001, that inspired Matt Wyant to join the United States Army. Although he wanted to join before graduating from Clarion Area High School in 2002, his recruiter wouldn’t allow it. He then went on to spend eight months in Afghanistan and four months in Iraq.

The message that Wyant wanted the students to know was how much it means for veterans to be thanked. He cited a Veterans’ Administration report that 22 veterans a day die by suicide.

“Always thank a veteran. Just saying ‘thank you for your service’ means a lot, and a lot of people don’t realize that.”

Wyant’s 14-year-old son, Lucas who sat proudly beside his father, plans to follow in his father’s footsteps.

“I’m planning on doing the same thing my Dad did,” he said. “I’d like to jump out of planes the same as my Dad.”

As Vietnam era Veteran Bob Risher ate a piece of cake with his granddaughter, he noted that it certainly tasted better than the C-rations he ate in Vietnam. He joked that he hoped the cake “isn’t peanut butter.” He doesn’t like peanut butter and actually used it to heat his C-rations.

“They used to give you little cans of it in the C-rations,” he explained. “You take a couple matches and get the oil at the top. The oil would light, and you can use that to heat the rest of your meal. It didn’t bother me because I didn’t like it anyway.”

Attending the tribute in uniform was 21-year-old Brandon Callender who just recently completed basic training and is in the Army Reserve. He said that he felt humbled to be in the same room as so many veterans.

Callender said that he hoped the students understand what so many of these veterans have gone through.

“(To) just kind of know a little bit of what they go through and have a sense of pride for them,” he says. “Me, just starting out, I feel like I haven’t done too much but I know the risk and danger that comes with it and I respect the people who have gone through it.”