Henderson native Justin Jordan’s theme for the speech he’s scheduled to give at the Henderson Veterans Memorial Foundation’s annual Memorial Day service is that those still here owe it to those who served and died “to live our very best life.”
“It’s for those who didn’t make it home,” he told the Hendersonian Thursday via phone from his home in Bandera, Texas. “We’re here to honor them.”
He said he’ll also spend some time talking about some past Henderson military men and women and throw in a bit about his early life growing up in Henderson. But the main focus will be how those still alive can pay it forward and summon every ounce of joy as a way to honor those military men and women who’ve died.
Monday’s Memorial Day ceremony is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. in Central Park. In case of inclement weather, Jordan will give his speech and answer questions on WSON.
Jordan now works as special operations director for Warriors Heart, a national organization that works with military, veterans and first responders suffering from chemical dependency and psychological injuries.
“I’ve been on the front lines of the war at home for the last eight years,” he said.
According to notes about him that will be included in the program for Monday’s service, Jordan is a U.S. Air Force veteran with 20 years of service and four deployments. But his most challenging work was as a non-commissioned officer in charge of base mortuary affairs, where “he ensured service members were honored with dignity and respect.”
It was in this role that Jordan said he saw service members who had drowned, been murdered and more, and all the while he had to remain stoic and professional when dealing with family members.
In 2009, Jordan was diagnosed with PTSD. He started going to therapy sessions and was surprised to experience the effect his stories had on other service members who were in sessions with him. He said he didn’t feel deserving to be there with them because many had been in combat and experienced that firsthand. He, on the other hand, was taking care of those who’d died in the mortuary.
Still, though, those in therapy were moved, and a therapist encouraged him to write his stories down as further therapy. He did. It led to his book, “And Then I Cried: Stories of a Mortuary NCO.” He said he wrote the book in 30 days.
It was published in 2012, and it’s still in print. Though Jordan said he’s not got rich off it—he said he gets a $7 royalty check every so often in the mail—he’s proud that his book has helped thousands and thousands of veterans and others with PTSD.
Jordan also spoke at the 2018 Veterans Day service at South Middle School, an occasion which was especially poignant because his father David started the Veterans Day service at the school when he was principal of then-South Junior High School. His mother Nancy was also a longtime educator in the local school system.
Jordan left Henderson when he was 19 after enlisting in the Air Force. He said he had tried school at Henderson Community College, but wasn’t a particularly good student, and when he left, he was ready to serve his country and see the world.
But Henderson, he said, is still in his heart.
“Everything ties back to Henderson,” he said. “We’re a community of service men and women”—and not necessarily military service, but—“service to the community.”
