Veterans reflect on new generation of soldiers

The UW ROTC's Memorial Day celebration, held Friday, was an opportunity for students to reflect on past sacrifices made by the armed forces, but also provided the veterans in attendance a chance to see firsthand the dedication of the new generation of military men and women currently in training at the UW.

Few people embody dedication to the armed forces better than Morley E. Yagen, a veteran attending the ceremony who served in the Army before World War II, placing him within a select group of previous servicemen who were in the military before the war began. Yagen appreciates the American public's support for veterans, which he describes as "tremendous," and is confident in the abilities of the future officers in training today.

"I think the public is very respectful of veterans," he said. "Just today I collected $221 for the local Veterans Hospital and the Poppy Program."

Yagen sailed from Seattle to Alaska in June of 1942, aboard the St. Mihiel, as part of the first American combat team to serve in the Second World War. His unit became the first to participate in combat air movements, flying to Nome, Ala., on a Northwest Airlines flight in a mission that established the protocols used by the Military Airlift Command for the rest of the war.

After concluding his Army service in 1945, Yagen requested enlistment in the new Army Air Force, which would later become its own branch of service, and went on to take part in the Berlin Airlift. Following the end of the airlift operations, he served in a variety of posts in Germany and France before his retirement in 1961.

Today, Yagen makes yearly speeches to UW Air Force cadets, students who consistently impress him with their intelligence and devotion.

"I think the cadets today are very well-qualified," he said. "[Cadets are] far better educated than they were 62 years ago; I remember that at that time, there were many soldiers who couldn't read or write."

Yagen also complimented the UW ROTC for consistently putting on quality Memorial Day celebrations, which he has been attending for more than a decade.

"They'll make good soldiers," said Albert Campbell, an Army veteran. "It's good of the ROTC to put on a Memorial Day celebration like this. So many people see it as just a three-day holiday from work, but I think there's been more appreciation of veterans and the military since Sept. 11."

Campbell grew up in Oklahoma before joining the Army, after which he moved to Washington and married a local woman before leaving for Europe. He feels that one of the biggest responsibilities of war veterans is to help educate young people about the effects of war and the military's role in protecting the country.

"We try to go to schools and talk about various things, and one thing they always want to hear is war stories," he said. "But people who've been in battle don't like to talk about it. I think that, by and large, the public has a good opinion of the military. It was good since World War II, and there were a lot of bad feelings over the Vietnam War, but that was a conflict we never should have been in."

Jerry Gribble, the commander of Mercer Island's Veterans of Foreign Wars group, anticipates a higher level of military involvement in American life in the wake of Sept. 11.

"I think people are more aware now of what vets have done and how the future of the country rests on what military people do in the next few years. For a long time, we had no real worries about our safety or national security, but war is a reality now. It was great to see that we're going to have a group like this taking care of us for the next few years."