Feels like going home: A little history

Both of my parents served in the military during World War II. My father was in the Army, mom was in the Navy. My mother’s twin brother, Uncle Clark, was a medic on Iwo Jima.

My dad spent most of his career working as a civilian at McGuire Air Force base in Wrightstown, New Jersey. The Air Force honored him with a 21-gun salute at his funeral in 1970.

The military has played a huge role across my family. Cousins include an Annapolis grad, two career Marine officers and a recently retired Air Force colonel.

As a kid, Memorial Day included a visit to grave sites and the playing of Taps. Army-Navy Games were a big deal. The 4th of July was truly a celebration of our freedom with a big parade down Front Street in Florence, New Jersey. When I was very young there were even World War I vets who marched.

To this day, at 54, I still call everyone in a military uniform "Sir" and offer my thanks for their service. One of my favorite nephews, Christopher Skorge, is planning a career in the military, perhaps as a Navy Seal. It is something that both scares and honors my sister Suzy. His uncle, too.

Yet, having spent a career in the media business, I've moved far away from these roots.
I've lived most of my life in pretty well-off neighborhoods of big cities where few folks ever encounter the military.

Trouble in Middle East is of great concern to my neighbors, yet the military

and defense of our country rarely touches our day-to-day lives. Most of the people I know respect and honor the military but have little sense of the size and scope of how our country is defended or how wars are fought.

When I tell my son, Nicholas, about my background going back 40 years, it feels like “history” to me and, probably, a bit of a "tall tale" to Nick.

One of the most exciting parts of this trip is the opportunity to get reconnected to an area of our lives that truly shaped me.