Honoring our Veterans: John Yashkus

John Yashkus served in the Navy for a total of six years, where two of those years he spent aboard the USS Kitty Hawk during the Vietnam War.

During those years, a man was obligated to serve in the military. Which is why Yashkus enlisted into the Navy before he was drafted.

Yashkus decided that he wasn’t going to let the war get the best of him and made memories to last him a lifetime.

“I had a lot of fun, but I made it fun. You know pushing bombs, and stuff like that. Laugh at the guy that pushed it uphill instead of waiting for it to go downhill. Little quirks like that were funny.” said Yashkus.

During an event on the carrier, he was also one of three sailors who were chosen to dance with Ann Margaret, a famous actress.

For his continued uplifting spirit Yashkus was also honored man of the month on the carrier, where he was given a 72-hour pass.

It wasn’t always fun and games aboard the carrier though, work still had to be done. Yashkus held a very important job while on the carrier.

“I had to make sure everyone found their way back to the ship. Basically I had navigational aids, flight schedules, made sure they had time in the air, how much time they had to make sure they were capable of getting their flight pay.” Yashkus said.

He also pushed bombs and did grunt work that kept the planes in top shape.

During his two years on the carrier, Yashkus said he lost a lot of his friends during the Vietnam War. He even had close calls himself when he walked under a plane when he wasn’t supposed to.

Although these were bad experiences for him, he described his most shaking moment to be when he witnessed the USS Arizona first hand and realizing how many sailors lost their lives on a frightful day.

Yashkus was fortunate to have survived the war unscarred, and thanks God for taking care of him. Today he is retired and enjoys traveling with his wife.