TOLEDO – The youngest medal of honor recipient, Kyle Carpenter, preached his gospel at this year’s Veterans Banquet put on by Task Force 20 at the Glass City Center.
“The smallest of steps completes the grandest of journeys,” was Carpenter’s refrain throughout his speech; it began with him being blown up behind enemy lines in Afghanistan, detailed his grueling recovery and concluded with a description of a thriving life running marathons.
“You can reach the finish line no matter how hard you get knocked down,” he encouraged his fellow veterans. But Carpenter’s cheerful voice carried weight in its lightness, as he shared his darkest days.
After suffering severe nerve damage from the explosion from a grenade, Carpenter remembered his great difficulty trying to eat a bowl of cereal.
“The milk felt like it weighed a hundred pounds…I struggled through every bite,” Carpenter said, as he recalled his physical, mental and emotional rock bottom.
The Marine Corps corporal shared his doubt in that terrible moment: “Who’s ever going to love me?”
Carpenter continually encouraged his fellow service members to keep taking small steps before taking their questions.
“It does not take a hand grenade on a roof in Afghanistan to be there for someone,” he ended his speech.
Founder and Executive Director of Task Force 20, Jason Graven, said the purpose of the banquet in its sixth year is to highlight what others are doing in the northwest Ohio veteran community.
“Our belief is that in order to address the veteran suicide epidemic, there’s no one organization that’s going to be able to do it alone, so we believe in all organizations working together,” he said. “We don’t think that every veteran is going to be cured using the resources of Task Force 20, so we consider it a disservice if we don’t know about or help promote the other veteran organizations that veterans may benefit from.”
According to a 2023 data sheet from the United States Department of Veteran Affairs, “the veteran suicide rate in Ohio was significantly higher than the national veteran suicide rate.”
Honorees during the banquet included:
The civilian of the year was awarded to Therapist Christy Wood.
Organization of the year was the Lucas County Veterans Treatment Court.
Vietnam War Veteran Wayne King was named the Veteran Supporter of the Year. King has been involved in the Whitehouse American Legion for decade and with the honor guard. A fixture at Memorial Day and Veterans Day services, King is known in the Anthony Wayne community for his work with service members, both present and past.
Finally, the veteran of the year was Vietnam War Veteran David Ridenour.
Ridenour passed away this past June, and so his widow, Jane Ridenour, received the award on his behalf. She told the story of when the two first met, and she told him, “Welcome home, after serving in Vietnam. That small sentiment meant a lot to David, and Jane encouraged all in attendance to, “Keep doing what you are doing to support the veterans in your life.”
