Alan Charles Dell'Ario

First Lieutenant

The Army prepared me for law school and my nearly 50-year career by instilling responsibility and accountability. I learned that I had to take care of the people entrusted to my care - a platoon, enlisted personnel - before considering my own needs and wants.

In 1974 when I was admitted, I never thought I'd see the day that being a veteran would be respected and admired. Although the U.S. participation in Vietnam was ill-conceived and ill-executed, I was proud to be in the service of our country. Three generations of our family have served, starting with my dad and uncles during WWII, for whom the military was their ticket out of the Italian immigrant ghetto of New York City.