Military service gives back to Iowa

By Maj. Robert A. Volesky

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Day after day, you can read stories about the U.S. military, headlined with words such as “sequestration,” “drones” or “soldier/airman/marine/sailor killed.” But how often do you hear from Iowans serving in the military?

It is not often for most, and this trend will continue as the military decreases in size while operating as an all-volunteer force. With no major military installations, Eastern Iowa may be especially challenged to understand those men and women who actively serve in our military. As a small way to bridge this gap, I am writing to you today.

When meeting new people in the military, I often am asked, “So where are you from?” It always gives me great pride to say, “I am from Iowa!” I learned important things growing up in Iowa: teamwork from Little League Baseball, faith development from religious education programs and discipline from delivering The Gazette to residents of Newhall every morning for six years.

Through these experiences and others, the people of Iowa taught me values that I remember by phrases like “winners never quit and quitters never win” or “accentuate the positive.” Iowa's values prepared me well for honorably serving in the military, easily translating into the Air Force's core values of “Integrity First, Service Before Self, and Excellence In All We Do.”

Serving in the U.S. Air Force is an honor and privilege I have enjoyed since graduating from Benton Community High School 17 years ago. During this time, I have done things I never dreamed possible and contributed to our nation's security in ways that give me pride. After graduating from the Air Force Academy and receiving my commission as an officer in 2000, I embarked on a career as a developmental engineer for the Air Force. In this role, I served on multiple teams supporting the research, development, test, and acquisition of systems that ensure our country can deter and, if necessary, win future wars.

One such team was the F-22 test team at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Whether testing new limits of the flight envelope or the integration of new weapons, no test mission was ever just a routine. The challenges of each day required the same teamwork I learned in Iowa in order to succeed.

For the past 11 months, I have attended the U.S. Army's Command and General Staff College in Fort Leavenworth, Kan. Here, classmates from every branch of service have shared amazing stories of self and family sacrifice. More than 98 percent of my classmates have deployed at least once, and most have multiple deployments.

During a deployment, we leave our family and friends at home station to serve our national security interests abroad, typically lasting from four to 18 months.

On top of the frequent deployments, military families often move home stations. This summer I will move to a new home station for the ninth time in 17 years. This includes assignments in every time zone in the continental United States and one year in South Korea.

While exciting, moving every few years can have its challenges. The importance of community remains as true for me now as it did growing up in Iowa, and it takes discipline to keep in touch with family and friends across the miles.

Given all of this, why would anyone want to serve in the military? People have different reasons for why they first volunteered to serve and why they continue to serve. For me, my service is really for Iowa. I serve in honor of those Iowans who gave me the education and values I have needed to succeed. I want to ensure that I take the investments made in me and give back in a way that our society needs.

Thank you for giving me this opportunity to serve you.

Maj. Robert A. Volesky, who grew up in Newhall, is an Air Force Academy graduate who is stationed at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College in Fort Leavenworth, Kan. He will give the keynote address at the Newhall American Legion's Memorial Day ceremony at 10 a.m. today. Comments: robert.a.volesky@us.army.mil