Air Force veteran Bill Lake served overseas, lost brother in Vietnam

Earlier this year, Bill Lake turned 80.

Now retired after a long and impressive career traveling the world in the U.S. Air Force and Army Reserve, Lake made the short move from Plano to Sandwich, where he’s now making the most of his golden years.

Certainly, his wife Lana, seven children, 17 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren provide him with a great deal of joy these days, which he certainly deserves after fighting for our freedoms for most of his life and suffering through the tragic loss of his brother, Sgt. James Lake, who was killed in action in Vietnam in 1968.

“I came home for five weeks and it takes a while for a body to come back,” he said. “I found out that I had to go to Guam for six months and my folks were terrified. They had just lost their son and didn’t want to lose their only other son. They went through political means to get me out of the military.”

Lake gave his military future serious consideration at that time. He had served about eight years already, but he’d also seen first-hand the devastation consequences war could have on the military and their loved ones.

“I knew I would be gone the next four or five years away from my family and I had two children at the time, and a wife, so that’s not really the life for a married man and father,” he said. “My neighbor had a four-year-old daughter who he never knew so I figured I would get out now.”

Upon his return home, Lake returned to civilian life. He worked from 1968 until 1989 for the Western Electric Company, which would later be known as AT&T Technologies and Lucent Industries.

Among his different positions during a productive 21-year tenure, Lake was the finance officer of Western Electric Montgomery Works. He’d also spend 10 years as owner and president of his Lakes Comp-U-Ease company, and 18 years working for the Kane County Government as a deputy chief information officer and chief of staff for the IT department.

Blessed with the ability to serve and multi-task significantly different roles, Lake spent most of these years while also serving with the U.S. Army Reserve.

“The nice thing was that I was able to have a civilian career,” he said. “As a reservist you’re a citizen-solider and have two hats. It was convenient at times, but sometimes it wasn’t. I had to juggle both at the same time.”

Lake had joined the U.S. Army Reserve 85th Committee Group, Aurora in April 1976.

“The nice thing about the Army Reserve is it’s not only one area of the Army, but several areas and 150 different vocations,” he said. “I went through several different 3-4 years long command assignments from battalion to group up to command level. I did that for 27 years and finally retired.”

Lake, who spent time in the Honduras, Afghanistan, Bosnia, Egypt, El Salvador, Germany, Kosovo, Puerto Rico, as well as made seven trips to the Middle East, would have been involved in the planning for Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003 but was automatically discharged per Army regulations after turning 60. He retired as Command Sergeant Major of the 416th ENCOM (Engineering Command) but was far from finished.

“So I got out of there, came home and worked my way up to president of the 416th ENCOM Association,” he said. “And then after my tenure was up, I stayed on as a director for 13 years, and then I decided I’d like to help the Army Reserve so I became an Army Reserve Ambassador for Illinois.”

Lake served in such a capacity from May 2016 until the end of June last year, a long time from when he joined the Air Force in 1961.

Although he had considered becoming a helicopter mechanic while training at Lackland AFB in San Antonio, Texas, he became a jet engine mechanic instead. He worked on the J57 turbojet engines that were used on the B-52 Stratofortress and the KC-135 Stratotanker. While there, and just a year after he’d enlisted, his Travis AFB in California was on alert for the Cuban Missile Crisis between the U.S. and the Soviet Union in 1962.

He was stationed at Torrejon Air Base in Madrid, Spain, from 1963-1966. He was at Clinton Sherman Air Force Base in Oklahoma from 1966-1968, which is where he was when he learned about his brother.

Among Lake’s military award and decorations are the Legion of Merit and three Meritorious Service Medals. He was awarded the Bronze Order of the de Fleury Medal, which is awarded annually to several soldiers and civilians with the Engineer Regiment based on input from senior Commanders and their Sergeants Major.

As past president and life member of the 416th ENCOM Association, Lake has kept himself busy throughout his 80 years. He remains involved in several organizations and clubs, including Telephone Pioneers America, Army Engineer Association, Illinois Veteran’s Breakfast Club, Sandwich American Legion and Sandwich VFW.