Celebrating Veterans Day
Dr. Matthew Stafford joined the U.S. Air Force in search of a college education and paid medical care for his growing family. He figured he would get his degree and be out in four years.
When he retired 29 years later, he had earned multiple college degrees and had seen many parts of the world. He and his wife, Jacqueline, have five children
“The military service is a remarkable enterprise that gave me many opportunities,” said Stafford, who will be the special guest and speaker at the Veterans’ Museum’s Annual Veterans Day Commemoration on Sunday, Nov. 9.
The event is at 2 p.m. in the headquarters building, 100 Veterans Drive in Halls. Museum staff chose the Sunday before the Nov. 11 holiday so it would not compete with other events in the county.
“As the premier museum that honors veterans in West Tennessee, it is important we recognize not only Lauderdale County veterans, but veterans from all over West Tennessee,” said Pat Higdon, board chairman of the Dyersburg Army Air Base where the museum is located.
Stafford is a military historian, specializing in airpower history. He has spoken several times at the Veterans’ Museum.
He points out the tremendous respect Americans have for veterans today. However, it wasn’t always this way.
Stafford entered the military in the 1970s after the Vietnam War when many Americans were suspicious of people in uniform.
“We’ve gone from a country that did not respect and even feared a standing military to a country that reveres its standing military and all those who have served,” he said. “It’s a remarkable change.”
Each year, the Veterans’ Museum recognizes special guests. In the last three years, the special guests included Col. David Porter, a retired U.S. Army veteran from Jackson; Col. Ray Harris, a retired U.S. Air Force veteran from Lauderdale County; and Bill Allen, a retired U.S. Navy veteran who participated in the June 6, 1944, D-Day invasion of Normandy.
Both Porter and Harris pointed out that the military family plays an important role in the success of all veterans. Harris attributed his success in the military to putting God first, believing in himself and setting goals, and having the discipline to achieve them.
Allen told his story of surviving the Normandy invasion. Three days after it started, he was serving aboard the LST 523, when it was hit by an underwater mine in the English Channel and sank.
He survived by jumping off the ship, floating in the sea with another sailor and then being rescued by a smaller boat. His two bunk mates died. He attributes a “higher power” for saving him. Allen was able to visit the wreckage of his ship on the 70th anniversary of the invasion in 2014.
Stafford, this year’s speaker, followed his uniformed career with 16 years as a senior Defense executive, retiring as the Chief Learning Officer for the Air Education and Training Command at Randolph Air Force Base in Texas. Stafford was charged with overseeing the service’s developmental programs in professional military and continuing education, technical training, flying training, and a variety of other learning pursuits.
While in the Air Force, he earned a master’s degree and doctorate in history, a master’s degree in strategic studies and aviation, and two business degrees. He is a graduate of the U.S. Air War College and U.S. Army War College.
This year’s celebration at the Veterans’ Museum will recognize all five branches of the armed forces. A reception will follow. For more information, call 731-836-7400.
