By Blox Content Management BY D. SEAN ROWLEY Senior Reporter
SCHULTER 鈥 At age 73, Cherokee Nation citizen Charlie Thompson understandably thought his chance at a high school graduation ceremony had long passed.
But this spring the Vietnam War veteran and school resource officer was honored with his own little ceremony, thrown by faculty at Schulter Public Schools.
Thompson, who dropped out of school as a sophomore to join the Army at 17, had his GED converted to a diploma by Schulter schools in a surprise that coincided with his two grandchildren鈥檚 eighth-grade graduations.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 one of the greatest honors I could ever have,鈥 Thompson said. His voice broke slightly as he told of being handed his diploma and having the graduation gown over his shoulders.
Some decades ago in Korea, Thompson earned his GED while serving in the military. He served in Korea and Vietnam 鈥 where he was held prisoner for 29 days. After his service, Thompson completed college courses but never pursued conversion of his GED into a traditional diploma.
It wasn鈥檛 until he became a resource officer at Schulter High School three years ago that the possibility arose again. Knowing he would be working at the school where his grandchildren would attend, Thompson asked administrators if there was a way to convert his GED to a diploma from the school.
鈥淭hey said, 鈥榊eah, possibly,鈥 and we just dropped it at that,鈥 Thompson said.
School officials were feigning their casual interest. As Thompson鈥檚 grandchildren approached their eighth-grade graduation, administrators coordinated in stealth with his wife to plan a surprise ceremony. The timing was deliberate. They wanted to ensure Thompson could graduate alongside his grandchildren before they moved on to high school.
鈥淢y wife knew all about it ahead of time and never said a word,鈥 Thompson said. 鈥淚n essence, I got to graduate with my two grandkids.鈥
The ceremony made Thompson a member of Schulter High School鈥檚 Class of 2025, a merit he holds with pride even at age 73.
Thompson鈥檚 journey to Schulter and his diploma included service and sacrifice. He enlisted in the Army in the 1960s, initially stationed with the 2nd Aviation Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division in Korea. During a temporary duty assignment to Vietnam in 1969, he was ordered to man a machine gun aboard an Air Cavalry chopper for a mission, despite his primary duty being medical evacuation. His helicopter was hit by a mortar round in Laos 鈥渨here we weren鈥檛 supposed to be at that time,鈥 resulting in his capture along with another soldier. While being moved north to face imprisonment in a permanent POW facility, he was sprung from captivity after his captors were engaged by U.S. forces.
The experience left him with hearing loss that ended his plans to attend Warrant Officer Flight School. After serving more than five years in the Army, Thompson worked in the oil fields, later becoming a draftsman and eventually working on Air Force One modifications at Nordam.
Now, as a resource officer for First Line Securities at Schulter, Thompson has what he calls 鈥渢he perfect job.鈥 The position allows him to supplement his Social Security income while ensuring his grandchildren, now ninth graders, make it to school every day.
鈥淪ince I鈥檓 working there, my grandkids are able to transfer from here over to there, and they go to school with me, so I know they make it to school every day,鈥 he said.
Thompson said he often emphasizes the importance of education to young people, pointing to his own experience of leaving school early. He and his wife have been foster parents for years, adopting three children and being named Oklahoma鈥檚 Devoted Family of the Year by the CN in 1998.
The surprise graduation ceremony at Schulter represented an academic milestone for Thompson, but he also found something he long knew was absent.
鈥淵ou wouldn鈥檛 think a piece of paper like a diploma would mean that much, but when you get older in life, that was a big thing that was missing out of my life for all these years,鈥 Thompson said. 鈥淚 never really realized just how much until I actually got my hands on it.鈥