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"I'm going to the army" | Alcoa veteran reflects on military service after lifelong health issues

At 17 years old, Victor Hodge saw an Uncle Sam sign urging him to join the army. And despite lifelong issues with his health and issues with his kidneys, he enlisted

ALCOA, Tenn. — For Victor Hodge, Veterans Day is a time to reflect and look back on his time in the military. In that way, he's like many other veterans. But his experiences have been different than most of his brothers in arms.

"My grandmother told me I was different than my other brothers and sisters," he said. "I trusted in God because He had a plan."

Ever since he was a young, 6-year-old boy, Hodge has struggled with his health. Then, when he was 11 years old, he developed an illness in his kidneys that landed him in the hospital for 8 months. He spent even longer at home, recovering.

"I just knew he couldn't play with us, and he would watch us," said Paul Smith, his childhood friend. "It was hard to watch, really."

Since then, health issues have followed Hodge all his life. People told him that he couldn't join the army and that he wouldn't be able to take the intense demands of serving in the military. But when he was 17 years old, he said that saw a sign they were all wrong — literally.

"It said, 'Uncle Sam wants you.' It was pointing right at me, just as big," said Hodge, reflecting on what inspired him to serve. "And I told my mother, 'Let me out, I'm going to the army.' She said, 'Boy, you ain't going nowhere.' I said, 'Yes, ma'am.' But I said that's my way out, and she let me out."

He enlisted in 1978 and spent 2 years serving in El Paso, Texas. He also spent time in the Florida Everglades. Eventually, he said that he became a squad leader.

His doctor at the time prescribed a specific diet for him, and he said that his health issues were undetectable in his examinations. So, he was able to enlist despite his health issues.

"I figured he could handle it because he was tough. He was real tough," Smith said.

But when Hodge was 24 years old, his kidneys failed. Ever since then, he's been on dialysis — nearly 40 years. Yet, he still perseveres through life in a wheelchair.

Many people throughout his life thought that he wouldn't be able to serve because of his health. But Hodge ended up proving them wrong, and now he reflects on his time in the military for Veterans Day.

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