Rick Ludeman has watched both his daughters leave their home in Oxford to serve their country, one currently stationed with the Army in Iraq and the other preparing for a career in the Navy.
Ludeman, a 1968 Lake Orion High School graduate, is a Vietnam veteran who followed in his father Russell’s footsteps when he joined the Army.
Russell, who was in the Army Air Corps in World War II, met Ludeman’s mother Betty, one of the first women Marines, after the war. The couple are long-time Lake Orion residents.
?(Betty) was so early (in the Marines) in 1942 that they didn’t even have full uniforms for them yet,? Ludeman said.
Ludeman and his wife Cheryl, both teachers, live in Oxford and Ludeman’s daughters, Julia and Jacqui both graduated from Oxford High School, Julia in 2000 and Jacqui in 2003.
‘Jacqui is now at Naval Preparatory School in Newport, Rhode Island,? said Ludeman. ‘She’s due at Annapolis on the 28th of June, and she’ll be there for four years.?
Julia is nearly halfway through her tour in Iraq with the 415th Civilian Affairs Battalion, where she is on convoy duty.
‘She’s been there for four and a half months,? said Ludeman. ‘She’s near one of Saddam’s palaces. Sometimes she’ll call me from there. I talk to her about twice a month.?
Ludeman said he never directly encouraged either of his daughters to go into military service. After she graduated from high school, Julia traveled to Honduras twice to help with church groups.
‘She’s got a great heart,? Ludeman said. ‘I’m so proud of her.?
Julia was a cheerleader all four years she attended OHS, and also was a cheerleader at Western Michigan University.
‘About that time she joined the reserves,? said Ludeman. ‘She wanted to serve her country. I recommended the Air Force, my brother is retiring from the Air Force. She wanted to go Army.?
Julia took up nursing her senior year at WMU, and was in a two-year nursing practical when she was sent to Iraq.
‘Her unit was activated December 1,? Ludeman said.
Jacqui played volleyball in high school, and will play for the Navy in June.
‘They have her on first string already,? Ludeman said.
Ludeman never really thought about the connection of military service in his family until recently.
‘I guess I did unconciously (influence them), but I never pushed for them to go into the military,? he said. ‘They both like adventure and to be busy. Both are hard-working individuals.?
According to Ludeman, although Julia is only 5-feet 3-inches, she is a ‘go-getter.?
‘When she gets out, she’s going to possibly go to Airborne school,? he said. ‘I’m a pilot, and I used to fly with them. She’s also thinking about possibly being a linquist, and learning Arabic to help the children in Iraq. Or she might continue as a nurse in the Army.
‘It’s a very exciting life. She’s almost matter of fact about it, and my hair’s standing up.?
Ludeman spends much of his time when he’s not teaching high school world history in Almont waiting for information from Julia.
‘You have to have the faith and wait for the letters, the phone calls, to know that she’s OK,? he said. ‘You just take it one day at a time.?
Ludeman never imagined one of his daughters, let alone both, would join the military.
‘Or be in a war zone,? he said. ‘Julia motivated Jacqui…they’re very close. Julia has a great heart. She has kept her kind heart through everything.?
Julia has a new Grand Am waiting for her in the garage in Oxford when she comes home. ‘I tell her about it, and it tickles her,? he said. ‘We’re hoping she’ll be back in October.?