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LIBERTY — Boiler Technician 1st Class Keith Burnette, 66, enlisted in the U.S. Navy right out of high school and credits his time in Japan as one of the greatest experiences of his life.

“I was only about 18. I was in Japan, and I got along so well. I was good at learning languages, so I caught on to Japanese rather quickly and the people embraced me. I did well in Japan,” Burnette said. “I loved it. I really had a great time. I spent three years there and I got my driver’s license in Japan. I learned how to drive on opposite sides of the street and I just fully embraced the culture. It was an amazing experience.”

Burnette, originally from Youngstown, graduated from The Rayen School a year early and celebrated his 18th birthday at boot camp.

“My mom had to sign the (enlistment) papers because I wasn’t 18 yet. She was willing to do it as long as I passed the test (ASVAB),” Burnette said. “I passed with flying colors.”

Burnette had two conditions before joining the Navy.

“I went to the recruiters and I said, ‘I’ll join if you can send me to Japan. I want to go to Japan where my brother is,'” Burnette said. “Another condition I had was that I wanted some type of artistic position.”

Burnette, who has always had an affinity for art, was promised a graphics position with the Stars and Stripes newspaper in Tokyo. However, by the time he arrived, the position was given to someone else and he was ordered to a ship in Yokosuka, where he became a boiler technician.

“The last thing I wanted to do was be on a ship. I was very fearful,” Burnette said. “All I heard was sailors hanging over the side of the ship while the ship was going through the water… no thank you.”

Luckily, the ship he reported to was dry-docked and completely disassembled. He was a part of the crew tasked with putting the engine room back together so the ship could sail again. Working on the ship helped cure his fears.

“I knew that engine room like the back of my hand and by the time we got this ship back together, I couldn’t wait to get it out on the water. I was so ready,” he said. “I fell in love with it, man. The first time out at sea, I was so excited.”

After serving in Japan, Burnette reenlisted in the Navy in 1982. He officially left the service in 1990 when he was 33.

Upon leaving the service, Burnette continued to blaze his own trail by opening a restaurant and catering business called Pearlie’s Special Recipes with his mother in San Diego. After the business closed in 2005, he opened a contracting business called Final Touch, which is now owned by his children.

Although Burnette often took matters into his own hands, he credits his faith in God and his faith in himself for giving him the life he has now.

“Life lifes. You never really know what you’re gonna get. But it takes you through many different trials and tribulations and takes you places that you never expected and I never ran from any of it. I embraced it fully,” Burnette said.

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