Edgren High School sophomore Victor Lee practices using a self-defense baton on Airman Kevin Siharath during a 35th Security Forces Squadron demonstration for Career Day on Thursday at Misawa Air Base, Japan. (Jennifer H. Svan / Stars and Stripes)

MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan — High school sophomores Victor Lee and Casey Bennett are eyeing a military career despite the prospect of deploying — and even dying — in a war that might not be over by the time they’re grown men.

They like the certainty of working for Uncle Sam, in uncertain times, and say the benefits, from free health insurance to traveling the world, can’t be beat.

What they still don’t know is what military career suits them best.

That’s what Career Day was for and why 56 Edgren High School students in grades eight to 12 fanned out across the base here Thursday and Friday to shadow servicemembers in jobs such as aviation, law enforcement, teaching, child development, dentistry and communications.

“We’re trying to give them the opportunity to see what’s out there … before they go to college and choose a major,” said Edgren’s ninth- and 10th-grade counselor, Tony Ruffin. “Any time you can get exposure to a job site, it gives you awareness of what it really entails.”

Students this year filled out applications listing their top career choices and were paired with a servicemember, squadron or team, with whom they spent the day, according to Edgren’s 11th- and 12th-grade counselor, Kimberly Dickman.

In brief remarks Thursday morning before the students headed out to be shadows, 35th Fighter Wing and base commander Brig. Gen. Bill Rew advised them to take the day seriously. “Ask a lot of questions — ‘What’s it like to do this?’”

Rew told them he thinks people who “don’t like what they do, if they don’t have fun in their job,” feel miserable. This day “can really make a difference in your life,” he added.

Lee and Bennett, along with a handful of their classmates, glimpsed the life of a 35th Security Forces Squadron member. They toured the facilities where Misawa’s law-enforcement airmen work, sleep and eat. They pulled the trigger on high-powered automatic rifles — without ammunition; walked inside the tiny solitary confinement room; felt the sting of handcuffs; and struck a baton to a mat.

They even heard a few war stories, like the time Staff Sgt. Kelvin Hannah, noncommissioned officer in charge of personnel security with his partner, faced down a 6-foot, 7-inch intoxicated driver who fled from a crime scene and refused to cooperate.

“If you ever get the opportunity to become cops, you got to be ready for that experience; you never know,” Hannah said. “A base is just like a normal city. They have bad guys.”

Lee said he plans to join the Air Force but would first earn a college degree. “I’ve pretty much been around the military all of my life,” he said.

He likes the idea of protecting people working for security forces, but he has two more years to shadow other military units, he said.

Bennett said he’s almost certain he’ll one day wear a uniform. Speaking with Capt. Matthew Gibson, assistant operations officer with 35th Security Forces Squadron, was helpful, he said.

Gibson told him the military “provides you with a place to stay and always takes care of you. It supplies you with a steady life.”

Going to war “that doesn’t scare me at all,” he said. “If I die, I’d be protecting my country.”

Edgren High School sophomore Victor Lee practices using a self-defense baton on Airman Kevin Siharath during a 35th Security Forces Squadron demonstration for Career Day on Thursday at Misawa Air Base, Japan. (Jennifer H. Svan / Stars and Stripes)

Staff Sgt. Kelvin Hannah shows Edgren High School junior Kylel Blackmon an M-4 Carbine rifle during Career Day at Misawa. (Jennifer H. Svan / Stars and Stripes)

Eighth-grader Drew Holder was the lone volunteer to get fingerprinted by Staff Sgt. Annette Santos-Barnes of 35th Security Forces Squadron during Career Day at Misawa Air Base, Japan, on Thursday. (Jennifer H. Svan / Stars and Stripes)

Josh Adams, right, hoists an unloaded M-4 rifle at the 35th Security Forces Squadron Armory during Career Day. (Jennifer H. Svan / Stars and Stripes)