Steve Blish, a member and volunteer at American Legion Post 29, recalled wrapping up his service in the Air Force and returning home to a hostile response from those who opposed the Vietnam War.
“We were told flat on out, ‘Don’t even wear your uniform off base,’ because the American public didn’t care for the veterans at that time,” said Blish.
Now, the response is much different, he said, with people lined up to wave the American flag and thank the soldiers stepping back on home soil.
“Vietnam never got that, never,” said Blish. “It’s tough, leaves kind of a little bad feeling.”
But last year, when Claremont hosted the traveling Vietnam memorial wall, “The Wall that Heals,” Blish felt the honor that had been lacking. He delivered the opening day speech, and then the post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, speech the following evening.
He recalled asking attendees to walk up to the wall, shoulder to shoulder, and say a prayer.
“The mass of people that walked up was just unbelievable,” said Blish. “I couldn’t believe it.”
Blish volunteers at the American Legion Post 29 in Claremont, a local hub where veterans support one another — through conversation and assistance programs — and participate in community events across the city.
The Valley News visited two American Legion posts — Post 29 in Claremont and Post 22 in Lebanon — on Thursday to get to know a few of the veterans who spend time there. Over the years, the Legion’s members have included veterans who served in World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, the invasion of Grenada, Operation Desert Storm, Operation Iraqi Freedom and the Cold War.
The veterans who participated shared pride in their service, though it did not come without challenges, particularly ongoing physical and mental impacts from time overseas.
One common theme was a desire to surround themselves with fellow veterans who know what it’s like to serve, as those interviewed noted that military life tends to be misunderstood by the general population.
Gary Blish, Steve Blish’s cousin, joined the Army at age 27 in the transportation sector in 1980, he said Thursday at the Claremont Legion. He bounced around, serving amid the Persian Gulf War that began when Iraq invaded Kuwait.
Blish said he lost seven men in his unit in one year, and does not speak about the work he did during Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm in the Middle East.
“Us vets are a different breed,” said Blish. “We kind of stay to ourselves and let things go.”
Blish returned to the U.S. and retired from service in 2000, with benefits available for housing, education and medical needs.
Veterans who have a service-connected disability of 50% or higher generally qualify for VA Priority Group 1 and do not pay copays for prescription medications obtained through VA healthcare.
The VA in White River Junction hosts roundtable discussions where a group of veterans can get together to discuss hardships such as PTSD or substance abuse, which Blish said he attends every Wednesday.
“The mental support that you can get from other vets has been tremendous,” said Blish.
In May, the White River Junction VA received five out of five stars in the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ annual hospital quality ratings, which weigh mortality, safety, readmissions, patient experience and timely care.
Still, Blish said, mental health resources available to veterans should be stronger. An average of 17.7 U.S. veterans die by suicide per day, according to the most recent VA report, which covers 2024. One in 10 veterans who visit a VA medical facility suffer from substance abuse disorder, according to an American Addiction Centers study.
Blish misses the camaraderie of his time in the service, he said. Joining the military also offers training in “just about any field you want,” he added.
Marsha Bailey, a Charlestown resident and service officer at Post 29, served in the U.S. Army from 1981 to 1996, with her official discharge returning from Operation Desert Storm.
“I wanted to serve the community and my country,” said Bailey.
Bailey, who had three young children she wanted to support with extra income, joined the Army National Guard in Concord. She later became the transportation shipment clerk for New Hampshire.
In 1990, she was activated to Desert Shield, then went to Fort Devens, Massachusetts, for desert training in November of that year.
While serving, Bailey suffered three different incidents that caused neurological issues, and she has undergone three back surgeries and neck surgeries since. Bailey has used a wheelchair on and off, dealing with intermittent paralysis.
“I’m doing a lot better than I was,” said Bailey, adding that after her last surgery, she no longer uses a walker.
After her return, Bailey spent six years in Washington, D.C., in the hospital, but she said the transition back to civilian life went smoothly. Still, the scent of fuel can be triggering, she said.
While many veterans share similar experiences, they all have different ways of looking at them and recovering, said Bailey, and being among one another at the Legion can be very helpful.
“We can all come together, and we have that camaraderie, and that’s what helps me get through a lot of things, talking to my colleagues,” said Bailey.
With the way things are today nationally and internationally, Bailey said she’d support a young person’s decision to serve, but isn’t sure she would recommend it.
“The biggest thing is it taught me how to focus,” said Bailey.
Bailey is a member of Rolling Thunder New Hampshire, a public advocacy and education organization that seeks to honor soldiers who had been prisoners of war and personnel missing in action.
Locally, the Legion responds to needs from community members who served and are struggling to get basic necessities.
“If we have a veteran in need, we all join in and make sure they get what they need,” said Bailey.
The Legion has been meaningful for Bailey.
“Really, this has kind of been my home away from home. It’s a place where I can just get away and be here and talk to people, and it does help,” said Bailey.
Over in Lebanon, Al DePetrillo, 94, was at the American Legion Post 22 on Thursday. He graduated high school in 1951 and served in the Naval Air Force for five years during the Korean conflict.
DePetrillo was aboard the USS Currituck, a seaplane tender, for two and a half years. He worked in the weather department and dealt with a hurricane while traveling to Scotland.
“I joined the Navy because I wanted to see the world, and I only saw Edinburgh, Scotland and Toronto,” said DePetrillo. “I was a long way from Korea.”
DePetrillo has been a member of the Legion since it was built. He worked for his father’s cleaning business and as a part-time tailor upon discharge.
“I still am a musician, and I had a gig here October 9th, and I’m still doing the USO show,” DePetrillo said of an annual old-style fundraising music show he participates in at the Legion.
Henri Gilbert, 56, served in both the U.S. and Canada as a dual citizen. He served in the U.S. Army from 1986 to 1991, then in the Canadian Navy in 1993 and 1994. Finally, he returned to the U.S. Army again from 1994 to 1996.
As for why he decided to join, it was simple: As an American, Gilbert felt a call to serve his country. He’d advise young people today to do the same, but only if they have the aptitude for it, he said.
Gilbert declined to discuss details of the challenges he faced overseas, having served a year in Korea and six months in Haiti, where he said he developed PTSD from his role in peacekeeping.
“People misconceive what you say, and if you haven’t been there, you can’t understand it,” said Gilbert.
Gilbert enjoys coming to the Legion to help out others with their benefits. Upon returning from service, he worked at the VA for 15 years in housekeeping and facilities management.
Rob Ward, 74, grew up in Fairlee and still lives there today. He joined the Marine Corps, where he spent the next 20 years in aviation.
“The Marine recruiter was the only one who didn’t feed me a story,” said Ward.
Ward said he spent most of his time aboard Navy assault ships overseas. During Operation Desert Storm, he reloaded Sikorsky CH-53Es, heavy-lift cargo and assault helicopters, and flew them to Saudi Arabia to put them back together. He flew them during both Desert Shield and Desert Storm.
“Every day is a challenge when you’re in the Marine Corps,” said Ward.
While returning home was not an extremely difficult transition, it was still an adjustment.
“When you’re onboard ships, you’ve got a captive audience,” said Ward. “When you get home, you’ve got to deal with everything else in the world.”
Ward joined the Legion in 1997, and belongs to Post 79 in Thetford. If you’re a member of one Legion, you can access posts across the country, so Ward stopped in Thursday while he was in the area.
“A lot of people don’t understand veterans,” Ward said. “Most of the guys in here understand what we all went through.”
Steve Blish hopes people better understand the difference between Memorial Day — for military personnel who died serving in the armed forces, on the last Monday in May — and Veterans Day — which celebrates all American veterans on Nov. 11.
Blish recalled a difficult first year in the barracks when the holidays would come around.
“You couldn’t get home, so you just sit around. That was kind of a sad time,” said Blish.
And coming home, benefits were strong in 1982 when Blish joined the VA, he recalled. But he later found them dwindling.
“We had all the support we needed, but then all of a sudden the government decided they wanted to take things away, so we lost our dental,” said Blish. “That was kind of a slap in the face.”
Blish said he signed the contract stating he would do whatever he had to do, including giving his life, for the country. But on the other hand, the government promised to take care of him upon his return.
Dental care for veterans is restricted, and the benefits depend primarily on service-connected disability, per the VA website. Dental coverage isn’t included with VA healthcare and full dental care is limited largely to veterans with a service-connected dental condition, former prisoners of war and those rated 100% disabled.
Access to other VA care is mixed. The VA’s standard is to see new patients within 20 days for primary and mental health care and within 28 days for specialty care. Veterans who wait longer can become eligible to see private providers at VA expense. At the White River Junction VA, established patients waited an average of six days for primary care and two days for individual mental health care, according to the VA’s own data. New patients waited longer: 20 days for primary care, 35 days for individual mental health care and 60 days or more for dermatology, neurology, eye care and podiatry.
The VA lost more than 40,000 workers in fiscal year 2025, nearly 90% of them healthcare staff, according to a report from Democrats on the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee. VA officials have said the changes won’t hurt patient care and that wait times for established patients are lower than under the previous administration.
At Post 29, Commander Bob Lovett and several other volunteers work to provide financial assistance or resource navigation for veterans in need. Despite the struggles of service, the American Legion is characterized by a feeling of solidarity and community.
“And if I had to do it again, I would do it in a heartbeat,” Blish said of his service.
