Sometimes you set out to honor a veteran’s service. And sometimes, that veteran uses his story to honor someone else.
For Mike Gregory, a Fortified Health Security vCISO and retired U.S. Air Force veteran, Veterans Day is not only about his own three decades of service. It is about the man whose courage, humor, and faith shaped his life. That man was his uncle, Ulises “Junior” Gregory.
A Hero Who Never Asked for Recognition
Junior served two tours in Vietnam with the U.S. Army’s 1st Infantry Division, known as the Big Red One. His division was among the first to arrive in Vietnam in 1965 and faced some of the war’s toughest conditions.
He fought through thick jungle terrain, land mines, and sniper fire. One of the helmets he brought home had two bullet holes, front and back, marking the moments when his quick reaction saved his life. Despite those experiences, Junior came home to a country that did not welcome its veterans as heroes.
“Many people rejected the servicemen coming back from Vietnam,” Mike said. “But my uncle wasn’t bitter. He came back and made it his mission to make people laugh. That was his therapy.”
For the Gregory family, Junior was more than a soldier. He was a storyteller, a comedian, and someone who always saw the positive even in the darkest of times.
A Family of Service and Strength
Service ran deep in the Gregory family. For a time, Mike, his father, and his uncle all served at the same time—Mike’s father as an artilleryman, Junior in the Army, and Mike in the Air Force.
Their connection through service became a lifelong lesson in accountability and perseverance. “It was more than duty,” Mike explained. “It was about responsibility. You show up. You do what you say you’re going to do. And you do it with purpose.”
One of the memories that shaped Mike the most was during basic training. At just 17 years old, he received a letter from his father every single day of boot camp. “He would wake up at five in the morning, write me a letter, and then go to work,” Mike said. “It showed me that his words matched his actions. That’s the kind of man he was.”
Those lessons became the foundation for Mike’s 33-year military career. The military shaped his sense of discipline, faith, and family, and those values continue to guide his work today.
A Surprise Tribute
After a 33-year military career, Mike retired from the Air Force. But he wanted his retirement to serve as a way to honor his uncle in the way he never was for his service in Vietnam. On his final mission, Mike flew an American flag over the desert, had it signed by his commanders, and presented it to Junior during his retirement ceremony.
His 14-year-old daughter played the Star-Spangled Banner on the violin as Mike shared the story of the helmet that had saved his uncle’s life. “For the first time, I saw him cry,” Mike said. He did not receive that kind of reception when he came home. That was the whole point: to give him the recognition he never received.”
The flag was encased in glass and remains one of Mike’s most meaningful keepsakes. It is a reminder that gratitude does not expire with time. Every generation has the chance to restore what another was denied.
The Legacy He Carries Forward
Mike often says he stands on the shoulders of giants. Both his father and uncle showed him what it means to live with purpose, faith, and gratitude.
“Their example taught me that dedication is more than hard work,” he said. “It’s the ability to keep going despite sacrifice. It’s loving what you do, even when it costs you something. It’s doing the right thing because it’s who you are, not because anyone is watching.”
He still remembers his uncle’s laughter and his father’s steady encouragement every time he faces a difficult day. “Freedom is not free,” Mike often says. “It’s earned by every person who stands in front of the flag and says, ‘I do.’”
Honoring All Who Serve
In his tribute to his uncle, Mike quoted Benjamin Disraeli: “The legacy of heroes is the memory of a great name and the inheritance of a great example.”
Those words capture what Veterans Day truly represents: honoring those who have served and remembering the courage, humility, and selflessness their service embodies. For Mike Gregory, those values live on through his work, his family, and his faith.
His uncle Junior’s story may have begun in the jungles of Vietnam, but its impact reaches far beyond the battlefield. It lives in every act of kindness, every moment of laughter, and every quiet decision to serve others before oneself.
