Stories shared from generation to generation

Thousands of soldiers aboard ships along the Hudson Bay in Manhattan mingled with citizens in New York and allowed civilians onto the ship during Fleet Week.

On Memorial Day, floods of people filled the ships along the coast. Inside the vast vessel, the USS Iwo Jima, construction mechanic Ronald Obrien stood at a table and showed off the military's artillery by helping hoards of tourists in line handle them.

Obrien, 20, is from Vinton, IA, where he admitted he was a regular mechanic for the town during high school. He worked on a racecar with his dad in the backyard, and later on when he wasn't around his dad all the time he helped his neighbor rebuild a '57 Bel Air. Now he takes care of two large Humvees in the Navy.

Even though his dad is a veteran of the marines, Obrien wanted to be in the Navy. "I like to travel and I didn't want to be on the front lines of a war, " said Obrien.

Obrien said he doesn't miss Iowa except for his family and friends. He misses partying, but Virginia, where the USS Iwo Jima is normally located, isn't "always closed and it doesn't snow."

Obrien said he'd traveled outside of Iowa to go to the Lake of the Ozarks. But when he joined he military in the summer of 2008 he got to go to Michigan and California for training, and then he was deployed to South America for six months. In February 2010 he arrived in Haiti two days after the earthquake.

He'd never seen anything like it before. "I thought it was bad…the first thing I saw was houses fallen over, and a lot of people walking barefoot…Most of them were living underneath a tarp with a blanket."

This is the first time for Obrien to be in New York City too. He liked seeing Times Square and the Empire State building. Ground zero rose emotions for Obrien. He said he remembered sitting in sixth grade in science class when heard about it Iowa, but now he has seen it for himself, and it made everything more real to him.

Fleet Week is a time of celebration for the soldiers aboard the Iwo Jima, but the military clock ticks to its steady rhythm as always. The men participate in parades, services, and tours throughout the week. "It's not just a time for [the soldiers] to go into the city to have free time. We want to give back to the city of New York  - those who have given so much."

People from Germany, the United Kingdom, Puerto Rico, and New Jersey all made it out to Fleet Week. Veterans, family of participating military, and passers-by thronged 12th Street to honor their military men.

Tony Emmolo, a veteran for the Navy who now resides on Long Island, said, "Coming back to the ship brings me back fifty years… [I miss] the comaradery and the different ports." Emmolo said he never went outside New York when he was a civilian.

Obrien is signed up to stay in the military for the next six years. He wants to keep working for the military and move up the ladder of ranks. "I plan to be senior chief," said Obrien, with a smile. The lieutenant asking him questions asked him if he'd like to go on to be master chief, he smirked, "I may get there."

If he could have any car, Obrien would get a '75 Corvette. After working on a ‘74 Corvette with his neighbor in Iowa, he liked it but wants a '75.

Obrien and Emmolo might not have a lot in common, but Fleet Week brings them together and ties their story into the other thousands of men and women who serve the nation through military forces.