How did serving in the military change their outlook on life? What did they do in their free time while serving? How did the recent killings at Ford Hood impact them?

Those were just some of the questions Buckhannon-Upshur High School students had the opportunity to ask veterans directly Friday morning during “Take a Vet to School Day.”

The event may be new to Buckhannon-Upshur High School this year — the school is one of 13 schools in the state to host it — but the program is in its third year. The History Channel developed it three years ago in an effort to bridge the communication gap between veterans and today’s youth.

The objective is two-fold: first, to teach students about the sacrifices veterans have made and second, to create a historical record of veterans’ varied experiences.

Students from West Virginia University’s School of Journalism interviewed the veterans present and captured their stories on videotape. Those stories will be submitted to the United States Library of Congress as part of the Veterans History Project. Of course, students heard snippets of those stories after viewing a video introduced by Senator Jay Rockefeller, a strong proponent of the program and a member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee.

Five veterans with diverse wartime experiences discussed their service with students. The panel included Thomas Keely of Buckhannon who served in the Navy during the Vietnam War from 1955-1975; Ralph Stump of Mt. Clare, W.Va. who served in the Army during World War II from 1942-1945; Miles Paugh of Buckhannon who served in both the Army and Air Force during both the Korean and Vietnam Wars from 1949-1970; Robert Lewis of French Creek who served in the Army during the Vietnam War from 1961-1966; and Major John Knabenshue of Buckhannon, a member of the Army National Guard who has completed two tours of duty in Iraq.

The floor was then opened up for student questions with Keely — who is a retired chaplain and clinical pastoral education supervisor — serving as the moderator. A central theme that the veterans highlighted was how their experiences in combat differed according to when and where they served. For example, Knabenshue saw changes in his role in the Iraq War between his first tour of duty (2003-2004) and his second tour (2007-2008).

“I was in the Engineer Battalion [in 2003-2004] and we strictly conducted combat operations,” Knabenshue explained. “The war had really changed the second time I went. I was part of what you call ‘operations other than war.’”

Knabenshue explained that his job was to help secure an oil pipeline in Kirkuk, Iraq by preventing insurgents from blowing it up. The major said securing the pipeline was essential to “ensuring that funds kept coming into the country,” especially in light of Iraq’s crumbling infrastructure.

Knabenshue said he “learned a lot” during his second tour.

“Even in operations that are classified as ‘other than war,’” he said, “people still die. I think that’s sometimes taken for granted, and it shouldn’t be taken for granted.”

When one student asked the panel how they were treated by native populations, it became apparent just how much the United States’ reputation had changed in the international community.

Stump, the World War II veteran, said he was treated extremely well. Lewis, who served in Vietnam, recalled a time “when you could wear your American soldier uniform anywhere without any problem, and that’s not true anymore. Something needs to be done about the way the American soldier is treated in the world. Things have changed so much,” he said.

A few aspects of serving in the military have changed for the better, according to the veterans. For example, when a student asked Knabenshue how he had been treated upon returning to America after serving, he said he “couldn’t ask for anything more” and recalled “tearing up” at the amount of people who came to meet him at his homecoming.

“There’s a huge difference now between how returning veterans are treated now and how they were treated when they came back from Vietnam,” Knabenshue said, referring to the harassment and neglect many Vietnam veterans faced upon returning home in the 1960s and ‘70s.

Opportunities to communicate with family members and friends have also vastly expanded, Knabenshue said. When a student asked him how he kept in touch with the people he loved, he answered simply, “With e-mail. Just like you.”

Stump said that during the Second World War soldiers would receive a letter once a month. When they replied, it would take another month before the response would reach the intended recipient. “There were no telephone calls and not much contact with home.” Stump was one of five brothers who were deployed at the same time. He had one sister who remained at home.

“I never was brave enough to ask her how she got through that time without us,” Stump said.

Paugh, who served in two wars and two different branches of the military, said that no matter how you communicated with those at home, “You never told them where you were at or what you were doing. Just that you were alright.”

The question that the elicited the most poignant responses from panel members pertained to whether media portrayals of war were accurate or misleading.

Keely said that he felt that most films and television shows “tended to glorify” combat.

“War is not something anybody wants to do,” he said. “War is hell.”

Knabenshue added, “I can see what films are trying to get at, but until you experience the blood and the screaming, you have no idea. Until you live it, you don’t know what it’s like.”

Keely said that even secondhand accounts of war can have a serious impact on veterans who listen to them, referencing the recent tragic killings at Ford Hood in Texas.

“I have nightmares about combat experiences that I haven’t even had, experiences that I’ve heard about from other veterans,” he said.

“Since hearing about that [the killings at Fort Hood], I’ve been very upset and very nervous and haven’t been able to sleep for a couple nights.”

The event was hosted by Peter Brown, director of operations at Suddenlink Communications, which, along with Time Warner Cable and Comcast sponsor “Take a Vet to School Day” as part of the West Virginia Telecommunications Program.

In honor of National Veterans Awareness Week, Brown urged the students to “consider the service of a veteran you know… and the enormous sacrifices that all veterans have made.”