Senior Airman Stephen Becker, a native of Minerva, Ohio, talks candidly, Jan. 31, 2014, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, about how attending and graduating from the U.S. Army Ranger School has changed his life. Becker is the 257th airman to graduate from the U.S. Army Ranger School at Fort Benning, Ga. The purpose of the school is to develop combat skills of selected officers and enlisted men by requiring them to perform effectively as small unit leaders in a realistic tactical environment, under mental and physical stress approaching that found in actual combat. (U.S. Air Force photo by Justin Connaher/Released)