"Change" is a word recently used to describe several elements of our society, including politics and the economy. For local veteran John Gandt, this word has become synonymous with not only his career choice, but the shifting mission of the National Guard.
The son of a teacher, Gandt, 35, chose to pursue a similar path after his graduation from Bloomfield High School in 1996.
He attended college at Southeast Missouri State where he graduated in 2000 with a degree in mathematics and secondary education.
Realizing it might be difficult to acquire a teaching position right away, he joined the Missouri National Guard.