TOPEKA (KSNT) – We met his wife two weeks ago, but this week the spotlight is on him. In this week’s Veteran Salute, we meet native Nathan Charboneau from Lebo, who proudly spent two decades in the Navy, traveling and helping others.
He dedicated 20 years to the service after joining right after the September 11th attacks.
“I felt led to join the service,” said Charboneau. “It certainly wasn’t what I had been working for or towards the last five years or so of my life. I had other goals in mind, however. 9/11 happened, and I was in boot camp in October. “
During his long career, Charboneau got to visit many places and meet so many different people. That is because he got to do so many different things, including aviation medicine, aerospace physiology technician, and combat medicine.
Veteran Salute: 20 years of service in Navy Medicine helping our country and other servicemembers
“A lot of people during my time in the Navy said the Navy stood for never again volunteer yourself. And I always took that to mean Nathan, always volunteer yourself,” Charboneau said. “And so any time that one of my seniors, uh, said, hey, we got something that needs to be done, I always said, yeah, I’ll do it.”
Nathan used that mentality for his entire career and beyond, as he says he is a professional volunteer working closely with the American Legion in Lebo, throughout the community, and with the local schools and churches.
If you know a veteran you would like to nominate and showcase, email veterans@ksnt.com.
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