Terry Yoder

Fifty-one years ago on Nov. 18, I stepped on a landmine. I still carry shrapnel. I can’t have an MRI.

I was infantry in Vietnam. Also a tunnel rat. I think one reason was because I was so small. But I was never forced to – I always volunteered. A flashlight and a .45 is what I took down.

I’ve lived in Goshen pretty much all my life. I was born here.

I was in the Army for two years, 1967 to ’69. I was drafted. I was there during the Tet Offensive.

Question: You made it through. It sounds like you probably still think about people who didn’t.

Terry Yoder: All the time. It never goes away.

I was married for 46 years, and there were things that I never even talked to my wife about. There are just some things that are left unsaid.

I think Veterans Day is a good thing. Sometimes I don’t think the veterans are really appreciated. I think it’s taken for granted. I don’t care if you were in the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, the Marines, National Guard. I don’t care what your job was – it takes the full circle to make everything work. It doesn’t matter what branch of the service you were in. It takes everyone to make it work. Anybody in the military has my respect.