A man on a mission

At age 79, Jack Nist has a new mission. He’s finding ways to encourage his fellow Veterans to take advantage of the care they have earned at the VA. He believes the people at the VA make the huge difference in patient care.  

“Every person I meet at the VA – be it medical staff or janitor – I ask their name, and I share this little speech,” said Nist, a Vietnam Veteran. “You always thank us for our service, so I want to thank you for being here because you could be someplace else. And my feedback for the Minneapolis VA is that the VA treats the person, civilian medicine treats the disease - a huge difference in care. You’re in a good place. And I thank you.”  

Nist’s service began on April Fool’s Day, 1969. It was the first day of his Naval Aviation Officer Candidate School in Pensacola. Within the first week of training, he got blisters on his feet that morphed into something more serious. He was put on bedrest in a surgical ward of returning Vietnam War Veterans, and he was the only one completely confined to his bed. He said that the wide variety of wounds these young men had suffered was a profound education in what was happening in the war and its life-changing effects.  

He became a naval aviator and made it known that the A-3 Skywarrior was his plane of choice. The unarmed A-3’s were primarily used for aerial refueling and electronic warfare. He was assigned to an A-3 detachment that soon was deployed to the Gulf of Tonkin, flying the largest, oldest airplane off the smallest the oldest carrier there, the USS Hancock.  

“My goal became trying not to lose anybody while I was in the air,” he said. He completed 75 missions, and to the best of his knowledge, he did just that.  

He returned home in 1972, and had an incredibly full life, filled with family and a creative career as a screenwriter and college professor.  

Early on in his VA care, his primary care provider gave him a great piece of advice.  

“There are four things people should do as they age that they often don’t do,” the provider told Nist. “Eat and drink – don’t take in less calories when you’re older and be sure to drink enough water. Move. Sleep. And whatever you do, make sure that what you do is meaningful to you.”  

That last piece of advice is what Nist has taken to heart throughout his life. As he navigates the limitations of his newly diagnosed Parkinson’s Disease, he is focused on amplifying the great health care he is experiencing at the Minneapolis VA and on making all staff who are part of that care know that they are appreciated.