Illinois Army National Guard Lt. Col. Michael Barton, of Greenview, was 12 years old when the Persian Gulf War, known as Operation Desert Storm, started in 1991.

“I remember when the conflict broke out, I bought a copy of each edition of newspaper our gas station had,” said Barton, who delivered the keynote address during the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs’ annual Desert Storm Remembrance Ceremony Feb. 28 at the Illinois State Military Museum. “I still have those newspapers today.”

February 28 marks the 34th anniversary of the end of the 100-hour ground war, in which coalition forces defeated the Iraqi Army, the fourth largest military in the world, and liberated Kuwait.

Barton, the Illinois Army National Guard’s Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel, said that while 43 days is a small amount of time when compared to other military operations, “Desert Storm demonstrated our vast military strengths, the methods used to build up power in the Persian Gulf region wasn’t something quite seen since World War II.”

“The rally of the international community to enlist the service of 38 other nations as one united coalition has become the standard we strive for today,” he said.

More than 600,000 American service members deployed to Saudi Arabia as part of Operation Desert Shield, including approximately 1,370 Illinois National Guard Soldiers and Airmen.

“Eleven Army units and Air Wings were sent to support Desert Storm,” Barton said. “The fathers of two of my classmates serving in the Illinois National guard were sent ‘over there.’ We shared that experience. Then just five years and one day later, Feb. 29, 1996, I enlisted into the same unit and served with their dads.”

Barton said growing up in a rural community in the late 1980s and early 1990s, cable television wasn’t as widely available as it is today. As cable television made its way into rural communities, came the advent of the 24-hour news cycle, and the world was able to watch Desert Storm play out on international television.

“I remember my family had just recently gotten cable television,” he said. “Living in a rural community at that time, it really wasn’t a thing. During that time, the relative new concept of the 24-hour news cycle came to be with networks like CNN broadcasting Desert Storm in real time. The entire world witnessed our strength in action.”

Barton said he would come home after school and get the latest updates.

“I would immediately switch on the cable news to receive the latest updates,” he said. “My family would eat around the television, just watching. We watched strike after strike, the Patriot missiles intercepting Iraqi SCUD missiles. It consumed my afternoon and evenings until bedtime.”

But, Barton said, what was showcased during Desert Storm and continues to be the strength of our military is the people.

“It’s the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, and Coast Guard personnel serving that always has been and always will be the strength of our military,” he said. “The videos shown of our servicemembers in Desert Storm showcased the level of morale, professionalism, and fitness of our servicemembers. They were ready to engage with the fourth largest Army in the world, the Iraqi Army.”

Barton said it was watching Desert Storm unfold on television which inspired him to enlist.

“The dedication and eagerness of the men and women serving then to defend freedom and represent the United States against a tyrant and his Army, inspired me and countless others and continues to inspire us today,” he said. “Our forces made quick work of Iraqi forces, and we demonstrated our technological might to the rest of the world.”

Barton said compared to earlier conflicts, the precision targeting used during Desert Storm was considered antiseptic.

“No matter how swift our military actions are, they are never antiseptic,” he said. “War is personal. War is costly. No one prays for peace more than those who serve and those impacted by our service. More than 300 American service members died during Operation Desert Storm and Desert Shield, including 18 service members from Illinois, represented by their dog tags here.”

Barton said as Americans we must continue to celebrate the effort and achievements of those who served and sacrificed to bring liberation and victory during Desert Storm.

“We must honor the families who lost loved ones in service to our nation and whose lives were forever changed,” he said. “It is our duty as President Lincoln prompted us to ‘care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow and his orphan’.”