Hometown Heroes: Honoring Clark and Champaign County Veterans

Editor’s note: Hometown Heroes is a new weekly feature profiling Clark and Champaign County veterans compiled with the assistance of local Vietnam veteran Randy Ark. To nominate a veteran, e-mail samantha.sommer@coxinc.com or randyark48@gmail.com or call 937-328-0363. Any veteran of any military branch, years of service and age is eligible to be profiled.

Name: Dan Shroyer

Hometown: Springfield

Current Residence: Springfield

Family: Wife, Maxine; five children and nine grandchildren

Career After the Military: Insurance Broker

Hobbies: Fishing, pickle ball, weightlifting and billiards

Branch of Service: Marine Corps Reserves, Marine Corps, Air National Guard and Army Reserves

Dates of Service: 1955 to 1963, 1978 to 1985 and 1987 to 1995.

Deployments/Bases: Okinawa, Camp Lejune and Saudi Arabia

What did you do in the Service: Radio/telegraph operator and truck driver

Did you join the military or were you drafted? Joined

What did you learn from serving in the military? Leadership skills, learned to operate radio equipment and a tractor trailer to haul fuel

How long did you serve? A total of 23½ years

What do you remember most about your service? Having to haul fuel to the front lines just prior to the cease fire in Operation Desert Storm.

What would you like readers to know about your military experience? Serving in the military is a great place to make lasting friendships. It’s a good place to pick up some good habits that will help you in life.

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