J. Michael Earley’s military service ended in 1971 after a tour in Vietnam during which he earned the prestigious Bronze Star. But since December 1998 the chief executive officer of Bankers Trust Co. has been involved again with the nation’s armed forces as a civilian aide to the secretary of the Army. Now Earley has been honored for that service, too.

In April, the Iowa National Guard Officers Association presented him with the 2005 Minuteman Award, which is given periodically to recognize “exceptional achievement, a patriotic act, highly distinguished service and/or outstanding contribution to a military organization.”

“It’s one of the highest military honors given to civilians,” said Lt. Col. Greg Hapgood of the Iowa National Guard public affairs office. “He has just done a superb job, especially during the deployments we’ve had since 2002. He’s been excellent at taking our issues to the secretary of the Army and getting action.”

The job has taken Earley to various parts of the United States – Alaska, Colorado, Kansas and Texas, for example – and once a year he attends a meeting hosted by the secretary of defense in Washington, D.C. “It’s a fairly high-level briefing, and absolutely fascinating,” Earley said. “I’ve never seen so many generals in one place – and they’re bringing you coffee!”

Earley left the U.S. Army as a second lieutenant after serving as an infantry platoon leader during the Vietnam War. He spent nine months in the field, where he saw “more combat than I wanted to see,” he said. “It was scary as hell.”

He had started law school when his draft notice arrived, and the Army allowed him to finish that first year of school, then volunteer and go to Officer Candidate School. He trained at Fort Dix, N.J., got his OCS training at Fort Benning, Ga., went through “jump school” and “jungle school” and served as a platoon leader in a mechanized company at Fort Carson, Colo., before shipping out for the war.

“I knew I was going to Vietnam, and I wanted to be as well-trained as I could be,” Earley said.

Like most combat veterans, he carries more than his share of unpleasant memories. “War is an incredibly brutal and dehumanizing experience, and I wish it weren’t necessary,” Earley said. “There are things you see and do that you wouldn’t wish on anybody else.”

And yet, he credits his military experience with positive effects as well. “It was invaluable for the rest of my business career,” said Earley, who turned 60 last week. “The leadership, training and organizational skills, as well as the life experiences, are irreplaceable. I still catch myself developing an approach to problem solving that I developed at OCS. I have great respect for way the military organizes to accomplish a task.

“It’s easy to look back on what I thought were real hardships and realize that with a plan and goals, you can get through even those times.”

As a civilian aide in Central Iowa, Earley represents a region with no federal military installations, but a high number of National Guard members. “What we have are 10,000 National Guard men and women who make an unbelievable sacrifice,” Earley said. “They get jerked away from careers and family, then return only to be called again and again. My life was disrupted once, and then I went on my merry way. These soldiers have been mobilized multiple times.”

According to the National Guard, more than 7,000 Iowa Guard members have been deployed on active duty in recent years, mostly to Afghanistan and Iraq.

In presenting the Minuteman award to Earley, Maj. Gen. Ron Dardis, adjutant general of the Iowa National Guard, said: “His support has clearly contributed to the success of our mission during the most significant period of history in our organization since the Civil War. Mike has a tremendous grasp of the issues facing our soldiers, airmen and families, and his unwavering support has made our organization stronger, more relevant and positioned for even greater future success.”