Perhaps no one can understand your experiences as well as someone who has lived through them, too. That’s the case with Darryl and Julia Joseph—both veterans of the Air National Guard who served for years as flight medics.

“We met on a deployment as flight medics from two different units,” Darryl explained. At that time, they both provided medical care and transported sick and wounded patients on the aircraft. Similar to a bus route, medical air evacuation moves through specific areas to get injured soldiers to military hospitals and medical centers, moving them from the frontline to their next line of care in the states.

During his deployment to Afghanistan, Darryl worked out of the active Bagram Airbase. He said, “There were a lot of insurgent attacks and multiple missile attacks almost daily. Flying into hostile areas to retrieve the wounded was why we were there and we did plenty of it. My wife had flown these same types of missions on her previous deployments, so we both had an intimate understanding of the life we each had lived,” Darryl explained.

He said there were almost too many fond memories to recount: “We have cared for hundreds of patients, which is truly an honor. The thanks we have received for treating people with care and respect are forever etched in our hearts. Julia and I have both seen so much—from reuniting families to bringing troops home to die on US soil. The connections we make by spending time with people in unusual circumstances can last a lifetime. No one can understand the things we see or do or encounter unless they have lived it too. It’s that unique experience that bonds us.”

The couple dated long distance for several years until Darryl convinced Julia to move to Mississippi and they were married. He became a loadmaster on the C-17 Globemaster, a large military transport aircraft. Julia received a commission as a full-time flight nurse in the Air National Guard Reserves where she’s part of the air crew to the medical system.

When he initially enlisted, Darryl signed up to be a firefighter and has been a civilian firefighter concurrently with his 30 years of service in the National Guard. Thriving in dangerous, high-stress situations, Darryl’s current firefighting job is at the airport responding to crash rescue sites. Though he’s still a traditional guardsman, his aviation squadron is far more active that just one weekend per month. He’s constantly moving cargo and personnel, and is responsible for the total weights and balance of the large aircraft.

When Julia and Darryl were ready to start a family, they wanted their child to experience all the fun of boating. Darryl grew up fishing with his dad and felt that the boat was one of the few places where they bonded easily. He said, “I loved being on the water and the access a boat gave me. Once I had the opportunity to buy a boat there was a great feeling of freedom and accomplishment, too. Owning a boat has been totally worth it!”

They now have an 8-year-old son, Jack, and they focus on having fun together on their Xcursion pontoon. Most of the time, they’re tubing, playing on floating pads, cruising around, or checking out the wildlife. Every time they go boating, Julia loves to visit her favorite wild pig, which lives on a little island on Ross Barnett Reservoir where they boat.

“We stop every time we’re out to feed her,” Darryl laughed. “We also enjoy having guests on board and watching the fireworks on holidays. It’s the time together that is most important to me.”

Juggling their busy schedules and service around the globe, quality family time together is a welcome priority.