EL CAJON, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) — On Veterans Day, Meals on Wheels volunteer Lt. Julie Rowland showed her appreciation for Vietnam Veteran Charles Nunley’s 22 years of service in the Navy while delivering a meal and some magic tricks.
“If I’m walking around town, if I’m on my lunch break and I’m in my uniform, people will stop me and say thank you for your service, but that wasn’t the culture then,” Roland said.
“Nobody said anything. It was ‘Oh, you’re back. Oh okay. Hmph,’” Nunley said.
Meals on Wheels San Diego County delivers to seniors and disabled veterans of any age. Nunley and his wife Marie, who has Alzheimer’s, have been clients since July of this year.
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“It’s really cool to think that this is a Vietnam Veteran, but he was there when women were first breaking into the field,” Roland said.
“I was on the ship that brought on board the first women,” Nunley said.
Roland, an active-duty naval aviator, describes her relationship with Navy Veterans as a bond that transcends time, and gives them a lot to talk about.