My grandpa, the Army Air Corps cook

Sgt. John Bones/Courtesy photo

John Bones, my beloved maternal grandfather, was 34 years old when Uncle Sam called. He was likely destined to be what was called 'a gentleman farmer' (polite Midwestern words for a single male farmer without romantic prospects) before being drafted into the Army to serve in the Pacific during World War II.

Although I imagine he received some sort of weapons training, learned how to throw a punch and belly crawl under live fire ("this is the Army, Mr. Bones," as the Irving Berlin song could have gone, had he met my grandfather), his military service was as support staff, specifically to be a cook for the Air Corps. But not just any cook; he was in charge of the kitchen.

Why? Probably because he was a man among boys, quite literally, and the Army Air Corps needed such people to provide leadership and direction to the young bucks, some of whom likely had joined the military to fight the Nazis or the Japanese, and instead found themselves peeling potatoes and washing dishes.

I wonder if those same young men took life lessons home that my grandpa taught them in the days and nights of work. I wonder if they told the same stories of camaraderie he did after returning home, with their eyes twinkling with delight like his. I wonder if they remembered Sgt. Bones with fondness, as a good and honorable man who knew how to work hard, but wasn't afraid to crack a joke.

I can't help but think that most people outside of the military, when they consider what a soldier (or a sailor or a Marine or an airman) does, they think of men and women in mortal combat, slogging through blood and mud, coming under constant fire, a weapon slung over a shoulder, like something out of a movie.

But there are hundreds of thousands of men and women who served (and still serve) this country as support personnel. They fixed equipment, kept facilities maintained, and -- just like my grandpa -- made sure their fellow soldiers were fed on a regular basis.

No one is going to make an action-packed big-budget picture about my grandfather's service to this country. No one will write a thrilling novel about his adventures in a chow hall kitchen.

But I know he was proud of his service to this country during a time of great and terrible crisis, and rightfully so. He was doing his part to protect our freedom, which is something that every member of our armed forces does, be they leading a charge in to battle, or making sure that lunch is ready to be served.