Ryan Heyel always had a urge to serve in some capacity. It started after he graduated from high school and became even stronger once he graduated from college. He knew he wanted to do something for his country, but it was not until 2018, Heyel took a chance and signed up for the U.S. Army. 

“At the time, I received a pretty sizable offer to run track and field in college, so I chose to pursue that and get my degree,” Heyel said. “Once I got out of college, I still had this overarching desire to serve in some capacity.” 

After graduating from Hannibal-LaGrange University with a degree in education, Heyel reached out to a recruiter he had known from high school. He worked with the recruiter to establish a plan that would allow him to teach full-time, but still serve for the Army without missing too much school. 

Heyel just recently returned from Fort McCoy, Wisconsin. He spent all of June there, part of July and three weeks of August. There, he and others worked on professional development and job specific training. 

More specifically, Heyel underwent training on leadership, squad tactics, taking care of your soldiers, role-playing different scenarios and more. 

With his duties, Heyel did miss the first week of school as the assistant principal of Wright City Middle School, in addition to being the head cross country coach. However, he noted after some trial and error, the transition gets easier with time. 

He noted the difference in environments. When he is out serving, it’s “here’s what you’re going to do, here’s how you’re going to do it.” 

Compared to education where he is in charge of making those decisions and guiding students. 

“It was just a different dynamic, but it was nice not getting yelled at 5 a.m. either,” Heyel said light-heartedly. 

Heyel has traveled all across the country to different posts, ranging from Fort Jackson in South Carolina to Fort Benning in Georgia and even Jefferson Barracks in South County, St. Louis. 

“I love it down there [in Jefferson Barracks] – the history, the community. Everything is beautiful,” Heyel said. 

Over time, Heyel has gotten more used to the uncertainty of packing his bags to fulfill his duties. 

“I don’t want to say there’s this feeling of anxiety, but you’re essentially stepping into this state of the unknown. Once you settle into it, that goes away,” Heyel said. 

He noted that the military preaches being comfortable with the uncomfortable, meaning that you should be adaptable to any type of situation. 

Over the years, Heyel has been able to both serve in the military while also remaining as a present educator. He noted that both the school districts he has worked with and his unit have been easy to coordinate with when it comes to his schedule. 

Through the Army, Heyel learned a lot when it comes to leadership, development and self-discipline. 

“The military is very much a you take what you can get and you try to absorb as much as you can. It exposes you to a lot of different leadership styles and experiences,” Heyel said. “It really instilled that forward direction for me.” 

Throughout his experiences, Heyel has interacted with people in all areas of the country, from the west coast to the east, north to south and people from the Navy, Army and Marines. 

He described the military as his “family, outside of his family.” 

“I know for a fact that if I was struggling with anything, I have a very close-knit network that I can rely on,” Heyel said. 

Heyel recalled June 2019 a moment that had stuck out to him while he was in basic training. He was stationed in Fort Benning in Columbus, Georgia. It was ridiculously hot, but he remembers it as a phenomenal experience. 

He underwent basic marksmanship, military customs, learning the U.S. Army culture and more. 

“Words can’t really describe the end result of going through all of that, especially at the home of the infantry, it was pretty cool,” Heyel said. 

He hasn’t dealt with too much overlap, but when it has happened, Heyel found a way to make both work when it came to minor trips. 

“You’re just like, hey, I’m along for the ride,” Heyel said. “I know my job, I know my soldiers and know what I’m going to do, so I’m going to do the best that I can in the conditions that I’m in.” 

Heyel is about to hit his six-year mark in December. Normally, after six years the contract ends. However, Heyel decided to extend his contract. 

“I love what I do and I love the people that I’m with. The military has afforded me so many opportunities and experiences that I would not have had on the civilian side of things,” Heyel said. “I truly believe that military service gives you skills that you can take with you for the rest of your life.”