Ken Schuetter: “I would do it again”

Ken Schuetter was honored over the weekend by the Dubois County Veteran Council as the Living Veteran for this year’s Veterans Day celebration.

Mr. Schuetter joined the U.S. Navy in 1967 under the early enlistment program while a senior at Jasper High School. He reported to boot camp at Navy Station Great Lakes in August of that year. After boot camp, he attended Aviation Electrician Mate school in Jacksonville, Florida, before he was stationed in Corpus Christi, Texas, with a training squadron.

Two years later, he was stationed at Naval Air Station Oceana and assigned to Fighter Squadron VF-14 “Top Hatters.”

He married Mary Jane Hurst before transferring between duty stations, and she joined him in Oceana. The couple has two daughters, Renae Sternberg and Andrea Schott and seven grandchildren.

Mr. Schuetter was deployed aboard the aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy, and after a Mediterranean cruise aboard the ship, he was honorably discharged on May 3, 1971, as an Aviation Electrician Mate, Petty Officer Second Class.

Mr. Schuetter shared a bit about his military experiences during Saturday’s event.

Interestingly, and maybe proof of Dubois County’s commitment to military service, Ken regularly ran into classmates and friends throughout his career.

In boot camp, he ran into Arrol Jacobs. Then, Dave Hostetter reported to the Aviation Electrician Mate school while Ken was there.

The trend continued once he headed to his first duty station.

“After arriving at NAS Corpus Christi, Texas, when walking through the mess hall, someone called out ‘Hey Schuetter,'” Ken told the crowd at the Jasper VFW. “I knew that had to be someone from Jasper and it was Bernie Thewes.”

After transferring to Oceana, he ran into Jasper classmate Dan Neukam while reporting onboard the JFK for the first time.

Then, during the Mediterranean cruise on the JFK, he again heard the familiar, “Hey Schuetter,” while on shore leave in Naples, Italy. This time, it was classmate Allen Fritz.

“Dubois County’s patriotism was and still is all over the world,” Mr. Schuetter said.

Though he joined during the Vietnam War, he was never assigned to a squadron or ship serving there. Thus, he doesn’t have any war stories, but Mr. Schuetter did relate a few of his military experiences to the crowd at the VFW.

Of course, the first was in Aviation Electrician Mate school when the officer calling out muster attempted to pronounce his name. “He started stuttering and finally said ‘Studebaker,'” Ken deadpanned. “I answered, ‘Yes, sir.'”

He swears he never snored before joining the Navy, but soon after arriving in Jacksonville, he started snoring so loudly that his shipmates wouldn’t let him go to bed until 10:15, though lights out was at 10 p.m.

While in Texas, he herded cattle with cars on Padre Island. “That was bad,” he said, simply.

When speaking about his cruise through the Mediterranean, Ken kept it simple, sticking to the Vegas slogan, “What happens there, stays there.”

He told two anecdotes: one involving a beautiful necklace and the other about a heartwrenching decision between two Italians he met on the street.

He told the crowd that one evening, his good friend was on liberty without him. When the friend returned to the ship, he was proud of the piece of jewelry he had found. “He had had plenty of beer and was bragging about this necklace he bought for his wife,” Ken said.

When his friend pulled out the prize piece of jewelry, Ken noticed something. “It was sparkling crystal with a cross,” Ken said. I told Larry it was a rosary.”

His friend took it off and gave it to Ken so he could give it to Mary Jane.

“And she still prays with it today,” Ken said.

Regarding the tough decision between Italians, Mr. Schuetter explained that one evening, he was alone on liberty in Naples when a priest stopped him with a request. “He had some little kids with him and asked me to donate to his orphanage,” he explained.

But while the priest was talking about the orphanage’s plight with him, another Italian started yanking on his arm, telling him not to listen to the priest.

Reaching into his pocket, the second interloper pulled out a handful of switchblade knives, offering one for sale.

“So here I am, Ken Schuetter from Jasper, Indiana, in Naples, Italy, with God on one side and the devil on the other side,” he said. “What am I going to do? I will not get away without giving up some money. I was trapped.”

After thinking about it a bit, he made a decision.

“I figured they were both working together,” he said, pulling the switchblade from his pocket on Saturday to show the crowd. “I bought the switchblade so I would get something for my money.”

Mr. Schuetter has remained active with local veterans organizations. He serves as the Commander of Navy Club USA Ship #90 Dubois County and on the Indiana Squadron Staff and National Staff of Navy Club USA.

He is the past commander of the Disabled American Veterans Chapter 77 and is currently the District 6 Commander of the Indiana Department of DAV. He is also a volunteer driver for DAV.

He has also served in varying roles on the Dubois County Veteran Council for more than 25 years. Mr. Schuetter is a member of the American Legion Post 147, the Knights of Columbus Jasper, Precious Blood Men’s Club, and the Memorial Hospital volunteers, where he drives the shuttle and helps in the gift shop.

During Saturday’s event, Mr. Schuetter pointed out the work the Honor Guard does in the community, providing services at veteran funerals, sometimes multiple times a week.

In closing, Ken offered a simple thought.

“When I wear my Navy cap or visor, I get a lot of ‘Thanks for your service.’ I always say I would do it again,” he said. “When I get thanked for the job I did for the Dubois County Veterans Council, I always say I would do it again.”