Have you lost a family member or a friend in a war?

[Randomguy]

My family was lucky, and they were in the military between wars.  Grandfather, father, brother, uncle, all unscathed.

How did your family do?

[Chris...]

Pretty lucky here too. My Grandad was in WW2 for 5 years in N. Africa. He survived. My wife's uncle survived Vietnam.

[Zephyr]

I was the same as you RG.  My Grandfather was blind in one eye so they would not let him go to WW1, my dads generation was too young for WWII.  No one served during Korea.  

[maddmaxx ★]

I survived.  My dad survived. (good thing) My first cousin survived. 

[Wilbur ★]

Great grandfather injured in a Anglo-Afghan war.  Just a bayonet stab in the shoulder in Kandahar.   One grandfather gassed in the trenches in WWI.  He lived to 70 years of age but with numerous mustard gas related problems. Otherwise  everyone was fine.  

I lost one friend in the military and several in civilian flying. 

[Caretaker]

My Grandfather served in WWI, he never came back, at least not till the fifties when my grandmother died and he came back for the funeral.

He's my hero.

[JerrySTL ★]

An uncle died a couple of days after D-Day. 

In my 24 years in the USAF, I didn't know anyone who died in a war zone 

[2Far ★]

The 2Fars have been tweeners all the way back to WWI.

[ChrisL]

Both of my grandfathers died during the Japanese occupation of Indonesia during WW II.  My Dad was a POW but survived.  My oldest brother survived The Nam, barely...  Middle Brother and I both got recalled for the 1st Gulf War but didnt mobilize.  Lost a friend while serving in a non combat death.  Had a bullet wizz  by inches from my head while on patrol as an MP and nearly got hit 2 other times with accidental discharges.  I'll admit I'm a lucky fucker....

My family has caught every war since WW I (for 2 different nations) and a couple of of other wars not in our history books since they were Dutch colonial wars in Indonesia.  Service in the military, although never forced upon us, was something every male in our lineage has done for many generations.  Looks like its ending with my brother and my sons.

[shotgun]

A great uncle died in WWI. That is all. 

[TrentonMakes]

I am also among the lucky ones.  Both my grandfathers fought in WWII and both came home intact.

My best friend from high school has served (I think) four tours in Iraq and Afghanistan post-9/11 and he came home each time.