You join the Marines because you want to be the best. I did. But I got more than I bargained for, in the best way possible. I found myself in the cabin area of a helicopter, serving as an air crewman and door gunner for the Marine Corps, an organization with the fifth largest air force on the planet. That exhilarating job took me to combat in Operation Iraqi Freedom and kept me in uniform for over a quarter century. Proud to have served 26 years.

Tom Moore, American Legion Post 365, Vista, Calif.