As a veteran of the US Air Force, I can say that veteran is not exclusively a military term. You can be a veteran of any field, hobby, or activity if you’ve been there a while and are experienced.

We always get these people who might have served for a single enlistment (4-6 years), then make the rest of their life about their military service. It’s really cringey and they don’t deserve half the respect they think they’re entitled to. Your life shouldn’t be defined by a few years in a particular role.

(Hint: no one is entitled to respect. Respect is earned.)

For the record, I spent 20 years working an IT job in the military, mostly out of harm’s way. I feel weird when people try to thank me for my service. I didn’t really do anything worth thanking. Save it for people who laid down their lives in your defense. Most of us don’t actually experience that level of responsibility and hardship in our service; a lot of service members tend to have a pretty quiet career.