Ty “Doc” Watson served 14 years as a corpsman in the U.S. Navy, which included two tours attached to the U.S. Marines in Iraq.

As a medic attached to the Marine base in Al Asad, Iraq, which is west of Baghdad, the former North Carolina resident and a Bourbonnais resident since 2017, Watson noted he never fired a weapon nor was one ever fired at him while there during his tours from February through September 2007 nor from July through October 2009.

However, with so much destruction, so much pain and so much upheaval, it is impossible to escape the pain and violence that are constant companions of war.

“I had a purpose, but not what a lot of what my [military] brothers saw and went through.”

Nonetheless, the trauma of conflict can cast a very wide net. Upon his return from that war-torn region, he suffered through post-traumatic stress disorder and became somewhat lost following his 2015 military discharge.

With his wife, Katelyn, who is from Alsip and works as an emergency room nurse, they relocated 2017 to Bourbonnais.

Not long after his discharge, he found work with Old Dominion Truck Line as a dock supervisor, first in Chicago and then in University Park.

The employment was welcomed for the man who had joined the U.S. Navy as a 19-year-old, but even though he worked there for several years, it was far from providing what he needed.

He sought a sense of purpose. Like his Marine service, he needed to help others, to provide calm for those in chaos.

That purpose came in early spring 2024 when he was offered a job within the Veterans Assistance Commission of Kankakee County along Latham Drive in Bourbonnais.

From his third-floor office, the Veteran Services Officer works daily with military veterans seeking physical, financial or emotional help through veteran assistance programs.

The office is open from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Friday.

With his 3-year-old stress therapy dog, Maverick, a golden retriever, nestled at his feet at the desk, Watson makes it clear what this job is all about.

“I’m now fighting for veterans. I’m an advocate. I want to help them understand what they can expect from Veterans Assistance hospitals.”

Most area veterans are referred to the Edward Hines VA Hospital in Maywood.

While there are countless instances where veterans shied away from gaining care they had earned due to shame, unawareness or indifference, Watson is having none of that.

He served during times of conflict. He watched men and women suffer with wounds which were visible and also those that were not.

The stories of service members returning home from the Vietnam War are well known. Watson is doing everything within his power to make sure servicemen and women gain the access they not only deserve but also the care they have earned.

“It is very unfortunate how the Vietnam veterans were treated when they came home. But when [Iraq and Afghanistan] veterans came home, people greeted us at the gates.”

That welcoming certainly is appreciated, he said.

“It’s an honor to help them,” he said.

While not fighting with a weapon, Watson is nonetheless going to battle for those who walk through the Latham Drive door.

“I want to help them navigate this system and be able to file a claim. No one teaches you what to do when you get home.”

And, he said, so many veterans are of the mindset that they don’t deserve anything.

He said he works to crack through that belief. He works to, as he states, peel back the layers of an onion to see their needs and how he can assist.

“I tell them that even if they don’t believe they need anything, what about your spouse? What about the benefits your children can receive?” Watson said. “So often they tell me their service was about the honor of serving their country; that they didn’t join the military for the benefits.”

Not surprisingly, he said, there are so many things these men and women have not thought of.

Once those layers can be pulled back and needed services gained, joy can be seen on the faces of these men and women. It can be found not only on Watson’s face, but also in his heart.

“To hear the joy in their voice when they learn what they are able to get is something special.”

He has received countless thank yous, hugs and handshakes. It brings warmth over his entire body.

As a corpsman, he notes it was his job to take care of the men and women while they were in the service. He is now watching over them after their service.

“I feel like I’ve succeeded here. That means a lot of me.”

And, he said, in a way those walking into his office are also saving him.

“This job has given my life a purpose, without a doubt. I love this job.”

He also knows his purpose is far from over. In fact, he said, it is likely only at the beginning.

“I’m sure there are many veterans right here in Kankakee County who don’t even know this office is here.”