As a child, Brady Williams watched his father, Lee, jet off to Bosnia, Egypt, Kosovo and other far off locations as a search and rescue pilot for the Canadian Air Force.

Back then, it was very difficult to understand why his dad needed to be away all the time.

But now, at 24 years old, and a private in the air force — Brady finds himself following in his father's footsteps.

“Now I understand why he was gone all the time,” he explained over the phone from where he is stationed in Trenton. “It does make a big difference.”

Lee, who is now a pilot advisor at Defense Research Development Canada, joined the air force in 1973. His decision was borne out of a boyhood dream of flying airplanes, and out of the practicality of having his university degree paid for in the process.

Being a veteran of the Gulf War, and having participated in numerous other missions, he said the biggest sacrifice he made was being away from home but sees his son can grasp those sacrifices now.

“Brady is able to appreciate far more the work that I did because he's carrying out the same work,” he said.

While Brady is not a pilot like his dad, due to his eyesight, he works as a traffic technician involved with preparing planes and also having the tough job of greeting fallen soldiers when they return to Canada. Even though he isn't flying, he's still had the experience of being in a warzone when he was sent to Kandahar, Afghanistan about a year ago.

“You don't have much time to do anything,” he said of being in the Middle East.

“You're always working.”

Brady's interest in joining the air force came from acknowledging that he was not someone who could be stuck behind a desk all day — but he still wanted a good paying job and opportunities for travel. It also helped that his father gave him an insider's perspective.

“(He) showed me the light. Instead of sleeping in tents, I sleep in hotels,” he joked. “It's a much better lifestyle.”

Besides fulfilling all of his dream job criteria, he also feels good about what he does, he said.

“It instills a tremendous amount of pride (in me) that I'm representing Canada all over the world,” he said. “Pride that we're peacekeepers and liberators.”

“I go to work every day happy.”

Lee, 58, likes seeing in his son the same sense of responsibility and enjoyment he had when he was around the same age, he said.

“It's very rewarding work,” he said. “We (Canadians) have a good reputation around the world. It makes you appreciate Canada.”

With Remembrance Day approaching and Canadian soldiers still involved in various conflicts internationally, these two service men are aware of the equally conflicting viewpoints on Canada and its involvement overseas.

Lee, who has had more conflict experience — including being met with guns coming off a plane in Tehran and briefly being held hostage — said he recognizes people's differing opinions of war and soldiers, but the soldiers have a job to do.

“As a member of the military, you rely on the government to place you in the right place, right time, to do the right thing,” he explained. “You carry out the actions the government requires you to do.”

“Most people don't really understand. They don't have enough information — the information the government has to keep secret. They make decisions on inadequate situations.”

Being involved in the highly-discussed mission in Afghanistan, Brady offered his perspective after hearing from colleagues who were on the ground.

“From what I heard from people who left the camp, it seems like we're doing something good over there,” he said.

Both men note that regardless of the conflict, the sacrifices made by soldiers are something to be appreciated.

Lee proudly drives with the veteran poppy on his license plate, but still doesn't consider himself one. “I very much respect the thousands that went before me,” he said. Both he and Brady have had the opportunity to talk with veterans and hear their “incredible” stories, said Brady.

Lee often makes a point of striking up a conversation with individuals he sees getting out of “poppied” cars, and is still in awe of what these now old men have seen.

“It's almost impossible to grasp because of the nature of war,” he said. “When they were at war in the 1940s, it was up close, you saw death, it was fresh. Now the face of war has changed dramatically.”

Lee believes that perhaps part of the reason people don't fully understand the conflicts the country is in today is because they've never had the opportunity to really talk to someone who's been through it.

“It's (war) only a concept they can think about (but) when they can talk to someone who's been there an lived it, they'll get a much better understanding of what they're talking about,” he explained.

Lee and Brady may only represent two viewpoints, but they also represent two faces of today's soldiers. There is a young private beginning his career with potentially plenty more overseas missions ahead; and a veteran, who is nearing the end of his service and has flown around the world three times. But despite these differences, both wouldn't change anything.

“I love it,” said Brady, who particularly appreciates how his colleagues have become family. “Someone's always got your back.”

Lee shares a similar viewpoint with his son as he reflects on his many years.

“When I look back, I couldn't imagine doing anything else in life. It's a very gratifying life. I feel fortunate.”