My first husband was a veteran of the Vietnam conflict. Airforce, three tours there, lost the vision on one eye when he was hit with a piece of schrapnel.
My late father and late FIL both served under General Patton on the front lines of Germany. Both were in the Battle of the Bulge and many, many other battles. Both help in the liberation of death camps. My father lost the hearing on one ear when a shell exploded near him.
My MIL was a "Rosie the Riveter" and at 16 my mother was one of the quality control inspectors at the Kenrad plant in Bowling Green, Ky. where they were making radio bulbs for our Navy's submarines. Suppose those men would have felt safe if they'd known that the quality of their radios was in the hands of a 16 yr old?
There have been many, many of my uncles and cousins that have served. I've also been fortunate enough to be able locate and copy the documentaion on several family members that served in the Union Army during the Civil War.
We seemed to have missed the Spanish-American and the Korean wars. Or maybe I just haven't found it yet.....