SOUTH HADLEY — Brian Willette remembers the moment in 2010 like it was yesterday.

While recovering at a small camp in Afghanistan from a head and back injury caused by an improvised explosive device that hit the gun truck he drove, the U.S. Army veteran watched his son Kevin’s platoon march right into his camp.

Instead of heading home as he was planning to do, the South Hadley resident stayed in Afghanistan long enough for Kevin to pin the Purple Heart on him.

“ ‘Decorating Dad.’ That was the caption in the Stars and Stripes,” Willette said, referring to the military newspaper. “So we’re on Page 3 and a pretty good-sized picture (for) Veterans Day 2010.”

The ceremony was the end of Willette’s 23 years of service, and although he didn’t know it, the beginning of his journey advocating for veterans across Massachusetts. Receiving that Purple Heart opened the door for Willette to join the Military Order of the Purple Heart, the organization where his advocacy on behalf of veterans started and has continued for over a decade.

Willette does everything he can for western Massachusetts veterans, and he has the titles to prove it: National Chief of Staff for Massachusetts’s Military Order of the Purple Heart, VFW National Sergeant at Arms and National Honor Guard, Post Commander of the American Legion in South Hadley, chapter commander of the Yankee division of the Veterans Association Holyoke chapter.

For the past 13 years, Willettee has made it his mission to mark monumental moments in United States history as a way to remind people that freedom is not free and to keep the memories of veterans alive. He’s especially interested in honoring Vietnam veterans, who never received the recognition Willette believes these service members deserve.

As a result, Willette changed the culture around veterans in South Hadley, turning the town into a place where veterans are actively celebrated before, during and after Memorial and Veterans days.

Willette never planned on becoming a leader of veteran groups. Upon returning from Afghanistan after surviving the injury, he expressed casual interest in veterans organizations and joined national chapters of the Order of the Purple Heart and American Legion.

Only when a colleague set out to create a western Massachusetts chapter of the Military Order of the Purple Heart did Willette find himself more involved with local veterans.

Before he knew it, Willette was spearheading the new chapter, representing it at every veterans event in the area. Willette attended events so often that people at the ceremonies began to recognize Willette and his wife, Gina. His presence was enough to bring in more and more members of his chapter.

“We would go to events everywhere, and there’d be two or three times (the number of) purple hats and coats than any other guy,” Willette said.

As he became more involved in the veteran community, Willette took leadership roles in the South Hadley’s chapters of American Legion and the VFW with a focus on honoring Vietnam veterans.

Willette knew as a young child that Vietnam veterans received a less-welcoming homecoming than the World War II veterans before them. These veterans became his sergeant commanders and captains during his service in the 1980s.

“The guys who are now like sort of our fathers, as young soldiers, are Vietnam veterans,” Willette said. “When I talk about the Vietnam veterans, this is what I say: They taught us about more than just soldiering, but about life, too.”

When Willette racked up veterans leadership roles, he realized he had an opportunity to honor those Vietnam veterans who were skipped over. After President Barack Obama declared March 29 as Vietnam Veterans Day in 2012, Willette created a ceremony to honor Vietnam veterans in South Hadley.

“And so for the first few years, we’re lining these guys up. The crowds cheering. We’re pinning them with the pins, and they’re so honored to be honored,” Willette said. “They can’t thank us enough.”

Willette said Vietnam veterans continue to be the backbone of the organizations he leads, motivating him to continue his work.

“Coming into this role, especially with the Purple Heart, it basically gave me a voice,” Willette said. “I didn’t really take it on for the voice. I didn’t know what I was getting into. But then realizing I have a chance to honor these Vietnam veterans.”

Changing the culture

When Willette joined South Hadley’s chapters of American Legion and VFW, the organizations were casual. Members met at a bar and discussed life over beers. The honor guard performed their duties at funerals, but veterans took a back seat in planning events for Veterans and Memorial days.

“I went for the first time to my first Veterans Day event in South Hadley. I just watched our veterans almost like being put in a corner, and people who were not even veterans tell us about Veterans Day or tell us about Memorial Day,” Willette said.

He noted that the roles these veterans took were honorable, but Willette had just left a professional army. He wanted to join a professional American Legion and VFW.

“Being a sergeant, if it’s broke, I want to fix it. I want to add to it. I want to try to make things better,” he said.

Before Willette could change the way the two organizations operated, he had to move them to South Hadley. Originally, the South Hadley American Legion and VFW met in Chicopee. Willette brought the office to his geographic borders and moved meetings out of the bar and into the South Hadley Library.

With a more serious atmosphere established, Willette worked with members to plan events that honored the sacrifices of veterans. He ditched the parades and opted for a more somber Memorial Day event, packing South Hadley High School auditorium for a multimedia tribute complete with a video of South Hadley’s memorial sites, a recording of a 21-gun salute from an old South Hadley honor guard and a child sounding “Taps” on the stage.

Willette also added a flagging ceremony for Memorial Day called Flags in South Hadley. During the 15-minute ceremony, Willette tells the story of Memorial Day by reading aloud Gen. John A. Logan’s “Order Number 11,” the military order to honor the dead. The ceremony marks the beginning of flagging all six cemeteries in South Hadley, with each requiring about 2,400 flags.

But Willette doesn’t wait until the national holidays to tell the stories of veterans. He helps towns in Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin counties become Purple Heart towns. To become a Purple Heart town or city, the town select board or city council will sign a declaration to support Purple Heart recipients and place signs around the area with the names of honorees. South Hadley has eight of these signs, each inscribed with a name of a Vietnam War veteran.

Willette speaks on veteran suicide, starting a program called “Be the One” to encourage people to check in with a veteran’s mental health. He also taught classes on the five signs of mental illness and spoke on veteran suicide at the March for Matthew race. He plans centennial anniversary events each year to tell veterans’ stories and educate the community about U.S. history.

“So all those centennials provides for me endless opportunities to talk about American history, the sacrifice and really where we are today,” Willette said.

No matter how many events and programs Willette has planned, he still has more in the works. After giving up on parades for Memorial and Veterans days, Willette hopes to add a Flag Day parade for those who love to throw candy and celebrate first responders and servicemen. He wants to commemorate the Boeing-24 that crashed in South Hadley in 1944 next year. For Willette, there are always more stories and history on U.S. veterans to share with the community.

“I really enjoyed doing it because I enjoy bringing to life the stories of those who have gone before us, and I just feel it’s like my mission,” Willette said.

Emilee Klein can be reached at eklein@gazettenet.com.