A veteran’s service often continues past their enlistment, said keynote speaker Nicolle Laffin, a retired U.S. Army sergeant, to Powell High School students, staff, veterans and community members who packed into the school’s auditorium for the annual Veterans Day assembly.

“Even the smallest acts of service come together to build the broad and solid foundation needed for change,” Laffin said from the podium, drawing from historian Howard Zinn. “All service matters, military and civilian, in both direct and indirect ways, all service works together to support overcoming our biggest challenges.”

Following Laffin, Tyle Myers, the school’s industrial arts and welding teacher, and Tim Heine, Powell High’s job coach, took the stage. The latter led the POW/MIA Memorial Reading as the American Legion Post 26 commander. These veterans are still finding ways to serve.

“Much of this commitment is both physically and mentally life altering for many veterans. They carry their memories internally, within their heads, and may, on occasion, share them with friends, family or in general conversation, many do not,” Myers said in the opening moments of his speech.

The retired petty officer first class went on to share pieces of his experience — hearing the first shouts of the drill instructor, meeting your spouse only to ship off and near death experiences during the Gulf War. 

What does being a veteran mean, he asked the students and other stakeholders.

Among other things, “it means you take it seriously when you fly an American flag outside of your house on Fourth of July and Memorial Day, it means even though your body is filled with multiple problems, aches and pains, you would do it all over again in a heartbeat. Why? Because you deeply love this country of ours and you’re damn proud of it,” Myers said.