Iowa Veterans Honored with High School Diplomas

A trio of veterans from Iowa received their high school diplomas recently, marking a heartfelt moment as they walked across the graduation stage.

Robert David Holiday, Richard Hill, and Dennis Snyder, who served during the Vietnam War, were celebrated for their service during a ceremony at Muscatine High School.

“I look back now and think, ‘Everything I did in the service was worth it,'” Snyder reflected on his experience, expressing gratitude for the honor of participating in the ceremony.

Snyder, now 78, described his emotions upon hearing he would receive a diploma. “I couldn’t believe it,” he said, remembering how he shared the news with his wife, prompting her to tear up.

At the graduation ceremony, Snyder and Hill, 81, were the first of over 300 graduates to receive their diplomas, eliciting enthusiastic applause from attendees.

Both veterans grew up in Muscatine, about 35 miles from Iowa City. Snyder left school to enlist at 17, serving in the Navy from 1961 to 1965, while Hill completed his deployment in Vietnam by 1969.

“I don’t quite know how to take this,” Hill admitted, reflecting on his missed opportunity to complete high school.

Holiday, who is 85, wasn’t present at the ceremony, but he was also honored on May 14 when school officials presented him with his diploma at home, surrounded by family. He had graduated in 1958 but left early to join the US Army Corps of Engineers, serving in Vietnam from 1959 to 1961. He also worked in several European countries.

In the last three years, eight veterans connected to Muscatine have been awarded diplomas, according to local Veteran Affairs officials. Snyder’s daughter, Julie Larch, expressed her joy, saying, “I’m very excited because he got this opportunity.”