Tyler Hofer is being honored as Lake Andes’ November Veteran of the Month. Hofer is a Veteran of the Iraq War. He first enlisted in the United States Navy in 2004 after graduating from Andes Central. Hofer then attended Recruit Training Command (also known as Navy boot camp) at the Naval Station Great Lakes in Great Lakes, IL for ten weeks. After graduating from boot camp, Hofer was then sent to the Naval Construction Training Center Gulfport in Gulfport, MS. There he began his “A School” training to be a part of the United States Naval Construction Battalion, better known as “Seabees”. The official motto of the Seabees is “We Build, We Fight”. Hofer was specifically trained as a naval steel worker, which included building, fabricating, cutting and welding steel in the building of buildings, bridges, tanks and towers for the Navy.

The Seabee division of the Navy is a relatively new addition, only having been in commission for the past 80 years. This unit was initially created to be specialized support for both Navy and Marine forces in remote, punishing and hostile environments. Members of these types of battalions are individually selected and are required to complete more classes and specialized training including annual recertifications of Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) training and in weapons.

Hofer was a part of the Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 1. This battalion is known to be the original pioneers as the first Naval Construction Battalion of the Naval service that would eventually become known as the Seabees. The majority of Hofer’s service was spent overseas. He would be deployed for 6-9 months depending on the assignment and would then return stateside for a brief period where he would receive more training. Some of the places that he was sent to help rebuild include Iraq, Afghanistan, Maude (Baghdad), Jubaji (Iran), Kenya (Africa), Roda (Spain), Souda Bay (Greece), Sigonella (Sicily) and Okinawa (Japan).

Several memories stand out for Hofer, the first being when his battalion was sent to Kenya to remodel an orphanage. At the time Hofer was only 19 years old and seeing the orphaned children living in such extreme and horrific poverty left a lasting impression on him. He also survived a typhoon while his unit was working in Japan and was a part of Hurricane Katrina’s rescue efforts as his unit was stateside during the aftermath in August 2005. Another memory stems from his time in Kenya where he was on an 8-hour convoy through the heart of Kenya was able to see lions, giraffes and hippos at a watering hole in the wild. He remembers that the hippos were as big as vans. While they were working, there were monkeys that would steel their tools from the jobsite. Even though it was quite an experience to see these animals in their natural habitat, it also had the soldiers always armed when they left their camp. As the country of Kenya is split through the middle by the equator it can be quite warm. Hofer said that there were days it was 140 degrees outside, so it was no surprise that during that deployment that Hofer lost 30 pounds.

As his battalion was also deployed to hostile areas, it did not allow for Hofer to see many sites or explore the local cultures and foods. He does remember enjoying his time in Spain where the battalion was allowed a one-day trip to the Plaza de Toros de la Real Maestranza de Caballeria de Sevilla, which is one of the most legendary bullrings in the history of bullfighting. It was a special adventure for the battalion to take a sight-seeing trip like that. The team worked every day, so when they were not working it was time for the soldiers to catch up on sleep, to do laundry or play some PlayStation. Not only was his team deployed to hostile areas, but also many rural and underdeveloped areas, making it necessary for the soldiers to be resourceful and make the most out of the area they were deployed to as well as the resources that were available to them. One of the best parts of his military service was being a part of a brotherhood of soldiers that built their comradery through their shared both good and bad experiences and situations.

During his deployments, Hofer ran a lot of convoys, earning him the nickname of “Gunner”. He can remember many flights through both the military and commercial flights where he would fall asleep during takeoff and wake up landing in a different country. On an interesting note, during his service he only flew commercial twice, once to Japan and once to Spain. The flight was completely made up of his battalion only and even when the soldiers had layovers, they were kept in a separate more private area away from civilians. When the soldiers would have layovers in the airport, the United Service Organization (USO) would be on hand with snacks and the soldiers would be able to use phones to call their families and loved ones. As Hofer enlisted in 2004-2007, cell phones were still not widely used and if people did have a cell phone they were charged by the minute and per text message, as texting was in its infancy. During Hofer’s three years of service, he received several medals/ribbons/campaigns including National Defense Service Medal, Sea Service Medal, Armed Forces Service Medal, Humanitarian Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Service Medal, Rifle Excellent Medal, Pistol Sharpshooter Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal, Combat Action Medal and Navy “E” Ribbon.

Hofer is from a long line of military service men and women, beginning with this grandpa who served in World War II. He has had uncles, aunts, cousins, etc. in the military, which helped make his decision to join the Navy all the easier. Although he wanted to be a part of the Navy, it was not his desire to actually be on a ship during his service.

Hofer was born in Freeman and then moved with his family to Lake Andes when he was one year old as the majority of his family was in Lake Andes. After his honorable discharge from the military in 2007, Hofer returned home to Lake Andes where he started his life over again. It was definitely an adjustment coming home and finding his footing as a civilian. Eventually, Hofer found out that he really enjoyed helping people and decided to join the Lake Andes Volunteer Fire Department of which he has been a member of for the past 15 years. He currently works at the Lake Andes Wildlife Refuge. Hofer also has a beautiful service dog named Paco.

In his free time, Hofer enjoys golfing, BBQing, traveling and trying new foods as he is a big foodie. Hofer is a member of the Lake Andes VFW where he has served as commander and is currently the chaplain.

Thank you, Tyler, for your service, your willingness to share your story, and for being Lake Andes’ Veteran of the Month.