Our weekly series, Remembering Our Veterans, continues with the story of the Wilson family.

Father and son, serving and sacrificing. Their story is told by the son of a Vietnam Veteran, whose commitment to education is certainly a history lesson for all of us. 

Steven Mihalski was drafted in 1944 and became a cook in the Army.

But things quickly changed, and Mihalski joined the Airborne and took flight at the Battle of the Bulge under George Patton.

"He is a strong guy, he is very quiet, and he wouldn't talk about the war," said Doug Wilson. "I just remember there was always a strong family unit with my mom, her sister, my grandfather and my grandmother." 

Doug Wilson, the principal at Iroquois High School for nine years, was 13 when his grandfather died. His passion for history led to teaching social studies.

"I was just always fascinated with history, and I remember asking him questions but he would never talk about it," said Wilson. 

Mihalski was raised in Glassport, Pennsylvania, about a 30-mile drive to the city of Pittsburgh. His son was drafted by the Army in 1965 and spent two years in Vietnam.

"He was a bigger guy and they said you're going to be a M60 operator," said Wilson. "Which he knew the life expectancy of a M60 operator was not good because they're the ones the enemy wants to take out." 

Unlike his grandfather, Doug's dad did share some stories about his duties in Vietnam.

"He told me on Thanksgiving that they were supposed to be in a safe area," said Wilson. "And him a few buddies were down in a foxhole, and they started locking orders in, they were just getting closer and closer, and one of his buddies didn't make it. He said that was horrific."  

Steven Mihalski and William Wilson, thank you for your service.