JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — He served our country in the Army for more than 20 years. In this week's Stories of Service, a veteran's search to find where he's from, led him on a journey to continue to serve others halfway around the world.
"Being raised in a military family, we have a lot of structure in our home and the values of the military: duty, selfless service," Mishaw Cuyler told First Coast News. "Those were espoused by my father and that's how we were raised."
Cuyler retired as a Lieutenant Colonel after serving in the Army from 1996 to 2017. He recently took a DNA test to find out about his ancestry and learned that his family was from Ghana. Cuyler has since visited Ghana multiple times and was asked by a pastor of a church there to speak with children at an orphanage.
"I go and talk to the children about purpose and direction," said Cuyler. "I do some teaching of math and science in schools."
The man who rose through the ranks of the Army was truly moved by the spirit of young children halfway across the globe.
"They're some of the smartest kids on the planet," said Cuyler. "Most of them speak multiple languages, German, French and English in addition to their native tongue. You see their eyes light up in terms of opportunity to try new things and to see new things."
Cuyler also wants the kids to be able to be kids, so he raised money to build a playground at their orphanage.
"There's something special about making a connection and doing what you believe is right and impacting people," said Cuyler. "The children should not only be motivated and educated, but they should have that physical play part because that inspires imagination."
A GoFundMe page is set up by Cuyler in hopes of raising money to build three more playgrounds in Ghana.
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