DECATUR COUNTY, GA (WTXL) — More than a thousand veterans call Decatur County home. Their experiences may be different, but many carry lessons from their service about freedom, responsibility and looking out for others. Veterans say those are lessons the next generation needs to hear.
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The City of Bainbridge and the Bainbridge High School band helped bring the community together to recognize those who served. That service is part of a much larger story in Decatur County.
Census data shows about 1,346 veterans live in the county. Behind that number are neighbors who served in different branches, different places and different generations.
For Navy veteran Walter Goodman, six years of service meant seeing different parts of the country alongside fellow sailors. He says there's something bigger he hopes young people understand about that experience.
"It means very much to me that we can express to the younger generation the importance of serving our country and being a service in any way we can. I think for the sake of the country and to make it more viable because it becomes part of what it means to be part of the United States of America," Goodman said.
"Veterans have served and sacrificed, and so many in the past have sacrificed their lives and they gave full measure to serve this country," Goodman said.
For Army veteran Darrell Close, four years of service helped him develop his character.
"It shaped me as a pure man, a pure human, and showed me the right way to do things and keep me out of trouble," Close said.
Close says those lessons taught him traits like "being more responsible, caring about people, working to be a better person," he said.
Close says passing those values along starts with the next generation, including his 19-year-old granddaughter, who he says he talks to often.
Their experiences may be different, but both veterans say there's something worth passing down: an understanding of what service means, and the responsibility that comes with the freedoms they helped protect.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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