After 17 years serving in the U.S. Air Force, Special Agent Jason F. Canha has learned to take the good and the bad of military life. He has traveled around the globe, met lifelong friends and served in one of the most elite military police units in the world.

But Agent Canha, 37, who was born and raised in Oak Bluffs, has also had to endure long stretches away from his wife and two children, spent holidays with soldiers instead of family and passed along birthday wishes over the phone instead of in person.

He has devoted a good part of his life for the service of his country, but as someone once said, those things which are precious are only preserved by sacrifice. It hasn’t always been easy, but he is proud to have spent a career serving his country. And he is thankful for his family, which has also made sacrifices.

“I have been away from my family for long stretches; I have missed a large portion of my kids’ growing up, that’s been the toughest part,” Mr. Canha told the Gazette last week, speaking by telephone from Patrick Air Force Base in Brevard County, Fla. “But I am lucky to have a wife who supports me, and children who do their best to understand.”

He added: “I know they don’t like me leaving. It’s not easy. But as they’ve gotten older I think they’ve come to understand it’s part of having a father in the military. I hope they realize it’s not something I want to do. But it’s something I have to do.”

Last month Special Agent Canha received the Bronze Star Medal, the fourth highest combat award that can be awarded to a member of the U.S. Armed Forces, for his service in Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. It was the highlight of a career spent in the military, and a small measure of thanks to him and his family for all they have sacrificed.

Mr. Canha and his wife, Kim, who also served in the Air Force, and his two children, Dominick, 14, and Krista, 9, attended the ceremony on May 26. Last week he reflected on the award in the humble, matter-of-fact manner that often typifies men and women who devote their lives to service of the country.

“It was an honor and an exciting day for our family,” he said simply.

The official citation, given out by Col. John Ziegler, the Commander of the Eighth Field Investigation Region, explains that Agent Canha “distinguished himself by meritorious achievement . . . while engaged in ground operations against the enemy at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan from April 26 to Oct. 29, 2009.”

Because of the sensitive nature of the operation, Agent Canha could not provide much detail. As a member of the Air Force Office of Special Investigation, he helps to identify, investigate and neutralize criminal and terrorist threats to personnel and resources of the Air Force and Department of Defense.

Agent Canha had to get the okay from his regional commander in Colorado before talking to the Gazette, and even then could not say much about his time in Afghanistan.

The citation says: “He led counterintelligence activities during outside the wire combat missions supporting joint operations during the lead up to the August presidential elections and the most volatile and dangerous time span for Coalition Forces operating in the country.” It concludes:

“The exemplary leadership, personal endeavor, and devotion to duty displayed by Agent Canha in this responsible position reflects credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.”

Growing up on the Vineyard ­— the son of Brenda and Domingo (Mike) Canha, owners of DP Canha Appliance Repair — Agent Canha dreamed of a career in law enforcement, not the military. “I wanted to be a cop. Not a soldier,” he said.

He took a year off after graduating from the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School in 1992, working a job at Jim’s Package store before weighing his options for the future. After doing some research, he decided to join the Air Force, not because he was interested in a military career but because it offered great law enforcement training.

“I looked at the Air Force as a career path. I was looking for a way off the Island,” he said.

He did basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Tex., and after graduating was assigned to McConnell Air Force Base near Wichita, Kan., where he met his future wife, also a member of the Air Force. In the following years he was stationed around the world: Fairchild Air Force Base in Spokane, Wash., Malmstrom Air Force Base near Great Falls, Mont., Anderson Air Force Base in Guam.

Along the way he came up through the ranks, starting as a security forces patrolman before being promoted to investigator and eventually Special Agent. But it came at a cost, as he spent long stretches away from his growing family; his son Dominick was born while he was in Kansas, his daughter Krista while he was stationed in Guam.

“I missed a year of Dominick’s life after I went to Korea,” he said. “I give so much credit to my wife Kim for holding the family together. She is a rock.”

Agent Canha said he wasn’t recruited or ordered to serve in Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom; he volunteered. “I kind of put in for it. I always thought I was sort of lucky throughout my career, having missed [wartime] situations. I felt like I was due, so I went on my own.”

This is the part in the story where he goes mum. But it is clear his dream of a career in law enforcement turned out better than he could have imagined. And the citation makes it clear that he helped save lives.

“He directed military counterintelligence activities that provided early warning reports of enemy ambushes, improvised explosives devices, and planned rocket attacks that saved lives,” the citation reads in part.

In three years Agent Canha will have put in 20 years in the Air Force, making him eligible for retirement. He hasn’t decided if he will continue on, but he suggests that he probably will. “I see myself as a [military] lifer. And if there is more work to be done, I’ll be there to help,” he said.

And in the end, he said all the sacrifice has been worth it.

“I have met a lot of special people over the years, including my wonderful wife. It’s hard to describe the bond between military families; we watch over each other, we take care of one another, we rely on each other. This is not an easy life, there is sacrifice. But I feel blessed to be a part of it. Looking back over the 17 years, I couldn’t ask for more,” he said.