Military service has been a part of Josh Carlile’s life for as long as he can remember.

He grew up with his father, Vic, in the service, so the concept of being in the military was never an unfamiliar one. But Vic was hardly the first member of the Carlile family to serve.

“The family history is long,” Josh said. “Someone in my family has served in every major conflict all the way back to the Revolutionary War.”

Josh, a science teacher and athletic director at Manteno Middle School and softball coach at the middle and high school known as “Sarge” to his players, added that military service was never directly stressed to him in his childhood, having a rich family background in the armed forces propelled him to keep the tradition alive.

“When I got to that age where I was trying to decide if I wanted to join or didn’t want to join, I can’t remember my dad ever saying you should or shouldn’t,” he said. “He just remained available for questions and guidance when I had them and just steered me to the answers I was looking for. It wasn’t a whole lot of pressure, just family tradition.”

Josh went into the Army in 1994, initially serving until 2003. Those nine years featured several deployments to Germany and the Middle East. He then left the military for about six years, looking to start a family and civilian life, but missed the military life and decided to return.

It was a decision he said his wife, Krista Carlile, was supportive of and even encouraging of. Less than a year after returning to the military, Josh was on his way to Afghanistan.

After about one more year overseas, Josh was back home to finish up his career, eventually winding up a master sergeant and the branch chief for the State of Illinois Officer Candidate School.

Not only did Josh follow in his footsteps with a 20-plus-year military career of his own, but the pair also overlapped in their service, something that meant a lot to Josh.

“We took a picture in the kitchen, the both of us in uniform getting ready to go do our thing,” he said about the morning of his first day of training. “That was just in my brain and I remembered it so clearly.”

The family aspect of military life is of course important to Josh and the Carlile family, but it extends out into other aspects of life as well. The surrounding community also plays an important role.

Krista, who works alongside Josh at the middle school, said the support she and her family received while Josh was away was something she will always appreciate, and now knowing what that experience is like, she and Josh are able to provide that support for others.

“We have students that have parents in the military and are in those situations,” she said. “...I have a sixth grader right now whose older brother is joining the military, and they ask a lot of questions. We’re able to give back now more on the support side, and help people understand what it is.”

At the end of the day, it is just that ability to live a life of service, be it in the military or elsewhere, that the Carliles find value in.

Josh and Krista are happy that their children have sought out ways to serve as well, with their oldest daughter Reygan working as a nurse, son Ben being a criminal justice major with aims of being a police officer, and youngest Ty, currently a senior in high school, set to continue the family’s military tradition after graduation.

And while it is not always easy, Josh said he is grateful to have been able to serve in the ways he has.

“I think one of the greatest joys that I’ve had through my military service is knowing that I’ve done my part,” he said. “I’ve done my part to help support our community. I’ve done my part to help support my country. I’ve sacrificed to do that. And I’ve done those things willingly. Nobody has forced me to do it and nobody said I should do it, but I did it because I thought it was the right thing to do.”