Veterans Day can bring everyone together to not only give thanks but to celebrate all of the Veterans, many Americans believe that they wouldn’t be where they are today without the sacrifice of so many veterans. 

Many people would like to give recognition to two of the many Veterans at Erie. Kenneth Ailey a Campus Supervisor, and Matthew McCracken a US History teacher.

“Veterans Day is a day for me to reflect and pay tribute to my family, friends and all those that came before me laying the foundation for me to serve.” 

Kenny Ailey is very grateful for everything he has now, serving in the Navy has gotten him to where he is now as a campus supervisor. He loves his job currently and would do just about anything to keep all the students and staff as safe as possible at Erie

“I have a lot of great memories. I have a lot of not so good memories because being in the military is a different way of life.” Ailey explains.

Ailey went through many experiences as a soldier some were not so good, it can be hard to go through traumatic events. He did however gain some good memories, which can be very beneficial when looking back at his time serving. 

Ailey had a lot of factors weighing into deciding whether or not he should serve but one of the main factors was college.  He says, “I could not afford college and thought it was the best for me to learn a trade.”

He also has many thoughts and opinions on how it made him a better person as a whole, he believes it was very beneficial to shaping him into who he is now. “People should consider joining just for the discipline. The military is a very tough life to live.” Ailey, suggests. 

In the end Ailey says he’s, “just thankful for those who served to give us the freedoms we have today.”

Overall, Kenneth Ailey is grateful for the holiday and all Veterans as well as his family and everything that has gone into the shaping of his life. 

Matthew McCracken is similar to Kenny Ailey in some ways, they both are very grateful for everything leading up till now. They also have differences starting with the amount of time served and what they served in. 

McCracken served in the US Marines, “I served six year of active duty from 1988-1994”

While he only served 6 years he experienced a lot of things and everything he went through could be traumatic. While serving he learned how to bodyboard and surf in Oceanside at his first duty station at Camp Pendleton. As well as his participation in the Persian Gulf War 1990-91 of transporting equipment and people seven days a week.  

“I remember my last three years in Hawaii. I, enjoyed the state but the work became more miserable, a reason for leaving the military was going back to college.” Matthew stated

Unlike Ailey, McCracken believed that those who want and or like the military should join. He enjoyed the idea of the Military and knew he’d wanted to join since the ninth grade. He was always fascinated with reading primary source books written by veterans and talking with veterans from WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. 

“My father was drafted in the 1950s -he warned me not to join-, and both of my brothers served -and retired in the military- and so I signed up.” 

He says it is important to remember the veterans who served in peace and in war and wanted to help their country. Matthew McCracken still wants to recognize and give his respects to any other veterans.

“I like to visit monuments and enjoyed visiting Washington DC several times in the past and looking at Arlington Cemetery and the monuments and museums while paying my respects.” He says.

Lastly, serving is a big thing that can clearly make a huge impact on people as a whole. Whereas, Matthew McCracken appreciates the time in his life but doesn’t constantly think back on it. 

“It is nice that there is a holiday and I appreciate the support I receive and my support for other veterans but my service was a chapter in my life that is far away so I just talk about the holiday when I teach about the end of WWI in my US History classes.” McCracken says.

Veterans can vary in a wide variety of aspects, the way they were impacted, what exactly they did, how they experienced everything, and even when they experienced it. Many deal with lots of trauma after and most grow from the experiences then move on in life. 

In the end, Veterans day is an important holiday to take the time to respect and appreciate all that Veterans have done for the country. Whether they served in war or in peace and no matter where exactly they served in they have made a huge impact on our country for years and still continue to do so.