Remembering 9/11: 'Old Soldier' Enlists
Operation Yellow Ribbon chairman Michael Frangadakis joins the state reserves in his late 50s.
Just after 9/11, Los Gatos Realtor Michael Frangadakis, 64, went to the U.S. Army recruiting office in San Jose and asked if there was anything an "old soldier from the '60s" could do to help the military as a civilian. A young buck sergeant gave the Vietnam War veteran a puzzled look and asked him his age. When he told him he was 54 years old, the sergeant and others in the room chuckled upon hearing that someone over the 42-age-limit wanted to join the reserves. "Needless to say, I walked out very embarrassed," remembers Frangadakis. But as the country went to war following the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil, Frangadakis wanted to do something to help the young men and women being deployed to the Middle East. In 2003, he started the…
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Rev Dr christopher Flesoras
5:44 pm on Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Mike, A great story and a blessed service that you provide our State. The soldiers, their families as well as our veterans are grateful for your service in the CSMR. Hopefully, more will be inspired to offer their time and talent through your example! God bless you as well as those that you serve. more ›