Submitted Photo
Caleb Lindsay, one of many CC veterans, speaks at the CC Veteran’s Ball.
By Carlos Fandal III
Veterans Day stands as a tribute to the brave men and women who wore the uniform of the United States Armed Forces, selflessly dedicating themselves to the defense of our nation and the preservation of the freedoms we hold dear. Casper College has many veterans amongst its student population.
Veterans bring a unique blend of experience and dedication to the campus ranging from majors in agriculture to computer programming and everything in between. Caleb Lindsay is one CC student who served their country and brought that experience to CC’s campus. He is one of many with a career as a soldier, but his experience in the service remains very unique.
“I was a cavalry scout. So I did reconnaissance on the battlefield, kind of painting a picture of it for the battlefield commander. Realistically, I spent a lot of time mopping floors and looking at broken trucks,” Lindsay said with a chuckle.
Lindsay did much more than that, however, and traveled the world doing so.
“I did some Pacific pathways — rotations to different Pacific countries to train with their militaries. After I got out, I went into private military contracting and went to Afghanistan for many years.”
As another Veterans Day comes and goes, it’s important to remember why the holiday is so important. It’s a day of honor to those who selflessly served the nation. To a veteran, the day has a very different meaning however. Lindsay shared his thoughts about the holiday’s significance.
“Veterans Day is my opportunity to give back to my brothers and sisters. For me, it’s about giving back to them and honoring their services, and for people who didn’t serve to also give that opportunity.” Lindsay said, before furthering his thoughts on the holiday.
“I mentioned I was mopping floors, but realistically, I was ready at a moment’s notice to go anywhere in the world to defend the freedoms that we enjoy here. It’s an opportunity for ourselves, for us to give honor to our brothers and sisters as well as people to give respect to us for what we sacrifice” Lindsay said.
More and more citizens are molded into veterans every day, with the recent events in Ukraine. For those unaware, roughly a year ago, the Russian army invaded the country of Ukraine. In a precautionary response, the U.S. Army has deployed thousands of troops in surrounding countries. One such citizen turned veteran, Sergeant Nathaniel Seth Jordan, is a Casper native who joined the Armed Forces after attending and graduating from Natrona County High School. He works in the IT department at Fort Campbell, in Kentucky. Despite being excited to explore a new hemisphere, his time in Europe quickly turned sour.
Sergeant Jordan shared his story with the Chinook following his deployment to the potential front lines near Bucharest, Romania.
“We were put in these tents where there is no ventilation, and when a sickness started, there wasn’t a single person that didn’t get it. They didn’t really treat the sicknesses either because it was usually a flu. So, you know, if you get sick, they kind of just give you some ibuprofen,” Jordan said.
Camp conditions worsened as time went on.
“Some depression came because you don’t see anything but the camp fences. I couldn’t really see the outside world because we were literally in a Romanian base camp inside of a camp, our American camp was inside of a Romanian camp. So when you look outside of the fence, you just see another camp. There were people in close quarters — some people couldn’t handle it and would start just taking it out on each other,” Seth said.
Seth’s unit waited patiently at the read in case of the worst-case scenario. His said his unit was directly on the other side of the line drawn in the sand by the United States. If Russia had crossed the line, he and his unit would be up to bat against the force of the Russian Army.
“It was really scary because where we were wasn’t really tactical. If the war had escalated, we would have been hit by missiles. We wouldn’t even have had a chance to fight, which was really scary to think about. We would have died without even having a chance. Thinking about the fact that, if things were to escalate, we would be just immediately toast. What would we be, a martyr? I had those kinds of thoughts, but they don’t do anything for the good of getting the job done,” Seth said.
The legacy of the nation’s veterans goes far beyond the designated date of remembrance. Veterans like Lindsay, and Jordan shaped the course of history and continue to change the fabric of society. As the day comes and goes, appreciate the cost of freedom and remember the meaning of Veterans Day.
