What message would you want to tell the civilians in your area about us?

I live in south Mississippi right outside of Camp Shelby, one of the largest Army National Guard training centers in the country.  What I would like civilians to know about veteran's as a whole would be: 1. Not all of us have PTSD 2. Those that do aren't all severe enough that we want to harm anyone 3. Please stop treating us like we are damaged 4. Stop thinking I'm an expert in every field, I'm a veteran not a car mechanic/electrical engineer/EMT/sniper/surgeon. 5. Top of the list of questions you never ask a veteran "so did you kill anyone?" (yes I have been asked that).  

From the perspective of someone who was born and raised on the Northside of Pittsburgh and who has served over 23 years in the Army, I would like to tell the folks in Western Pennsylvania that the traditional blue collar work ethic that was instilled into all of growing up made the transition to military life very easy.  The values and beliefs that were ingrained into us at a young age are the cornerstones of the Army Values.  I would like to say thank you to my family and friends in Woods Run and Brighton Heights areas for preparing me for the rigors of life, preparing me to always do my best, and for ensuring that I understood the importance of teamwork, family and helping those who need it.  I believe what I brought into the Army from home helped mold me into the Soldier and leader that I continue to strive to be today.  Thank you all.

Since I live in Fort Lee (an AIT post) I think my biggest message to our civilian community would be "I promise you, these 17-21 year old children are not indicative of servicemembers as a whole.  Please don't judge us all too harshly".