At the young age of 19, most people have just graduated from high school and are attending their first year of college.

Jesse Ramirez, an Engineering major at Arizona Western College, had a very different experience, though, when he chose to join the military in 1993. After he spent a year in Tustin, Cal., training to be a helicopter mechanic, his instructor pulled him aside and asked if he wanted to be a part of HMX-1 -- the helicopter squadron responsible for the transportation of the United States president!

After accepting the offer, Ramirez was stationed in Quantico, Virginia where he became a part of the HMX-1 crew. He, along with the rest of the members, travelled wherever then-President Bill Clinton travelled.

"I felt lucky to be in that position," says Ramirez. "I mean, a kid at that age working for the president?"

Not only was Ramirez a member of the team, but he got to personally meet Clinton. It was an experience that seemed unreal to him at the time. After greeting Ramirez and asking for his name, Clinton thanked him for his service and they took a photo together that became one of the Ramirez family's prized possessions.

Back in his hometown in Houston, Tex., Ramirez's parents were both very proud of their son. "When I went to meet the president I got that picture taken, and of course my mom took it everywhere she went and showed everyone," says Ramirez.

Among the many memories Ramirez has working with HMX-1, he recalls a time in Madrid, Spain, in 1995, when he and the crew were to fly a practice flight to the different pick-up and drop-off points before transporting Clinton.

"The Spanish military insisted that they fly us to the locations in the king of Spain's Helicopter," Ramirez said, adding that some of the crew members, crew chiefs and pilots got into the king's aircraft and were escorted through Madrid and the royal palace.

"The Spanish liaison, who was seated next to our representative from the U.S. Embassy, looked back and noticed my name tag," Ramirez recalls. "He said, ëYour last name is Ramirez? I think it is strange to see that a name so common in Spain is a member of the president of the United States' helicopter crew.'"

"At that moment this surreal situation felt so much more real for me."

After his experiences working on helicopter maintenance and flying as a HMX-1 crew member, Ramirez felt it was time for a change. By 1999 he had joined the U.S. Army and was attending flight school.

"I remember my first time in the front as a pilot," he said. "It was kind of scary. You're in charge of that aircraft and everyone in it."

Soon enough Ramirez had gained confidence and was flying the helicopter known as the Blackhawk. Flying an aircraft was far from easy, though, and came with its share of close calls. Ramirez recalls a time during flight school when his helicopter and another almost went head on.

One thing for sure is that Ramirez will have many amazing stories to tell when his kids are old enough.

"My kids are still little," he says. "They don't really understand yet."