Amber Luchtefeld, of Columbia, got into her camouflage uniform early Friday morning and drove across Interstate 70 to Fulton High School because her nephew asked her to.
"He's in the band," Luchtefeld said of her nephew, Shawn Dixon.
Luchtefeld serves with the Missouri National Guard and also works as an insurance adjuster with State Farm. She came to celebrate Veterans Day at Fulton High School.
"It means a lot to me," she said of the holiday. "My grandpa was a World War II veteran. He received the Bronze Star for Valor."
Luchtefeld thought for a minute.
"I don't feel like I can measure up to the people who went before me," she said quietly.
The ceremony's keynote speaker was a fine example admired by many in Fulton and around the nation. Retired U.S. Army Major General Byron Bagby, a Fulton native and graduate of Westminster College, flew in from his Virginia home Thursday to speak to staff, students and invited veterans at the high school. He was wearing his VFW Post 2657 hat and told a story about it.
A few Veterans Days ago, Bagby went to North Callaway Elementary to talk to students there.
"A young man stood up and told me, 'Mister, you owe us a dollar.'"
Bagby said he questioned why.
"He said, 'We have a policy here that you cannot wear hats in school, and if you do, you have to pay a dollar,'" Bagby said. "So I paid my debt."
There are about 2 million people serving in America's armed forces and about 21 million U.S. veterans. One of those veterans was Bagby's maternal grandfather, Presley Dudley, who served in World War I. Bagby said he thought a lot about his grandfather this Election Day.
Kindergarten in those days was half a day long, so Bagby spent the afternoon with his grandparents while his mother worked.
"I came home to find my grandpa putting on a suit and tie," Bagby said of the rare occasion. "He said, 'I'm gong down to vote today.' He took me with him."
He also spoke of Fulton school bus driver Bill Houchins, who died several months ago.
"He was a World War II vet," Bagby said. "He had four Bronze Stars serving in the Italian Theater and a Purple Heart. I didn't know he was a vet until he passed away."
Bagby said his wife, Monique, retired in 2002 as a colonel. His son Benjamin served in the U.S. Marine Corps, and at one point served in Iraq at the same time Bagby served in Afghanistan.
"Set goals for yourself, for your life," he told students. "Identify where you want to be five years from now with your life, 10 years from now. All of you have limitless options. The door is wide open for you."
He also spoke of dangerous hot spots around the globe.
"There are about 65,000 American service members who are in harm's way right now," he said. "Jordan. Iraq. Afghanistan. The Philippines and other places where their lives are in absolute danger. Keep them in your thoughts and prayers, as well as their families."