At eighteen, F. Thomas Jones enlisted in the US Army in 1967. After completingbasic training at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and graduating from AIT at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, Initially trained to purify water, he found himself stationed at a signal relay site on top of Phu Keio Mountain in Sakon Nakon Province, in the northeast corner of Thailand, Jones spent the first five years of his military career performing a variety of duties from being assigned as a cook to driving 5-ton dump trucks. For the next fifteen years, he was transferred to units in Vietnam and Germany, and he had various postingshere in the States before retiring in 1987. After retirement, he became a full-time teacher in Memphis, TN. He also worked in manufacturing and construction and as an equine caregiver. Jones now resides in Indiana, where he has been a substitute teacher for many years. He is a member of the Fraternal Order of Eagles and Moose, the American Legion, American Legion Riders, and a life member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars.