Gracie, I'm obviously carrying your thread re: grandparents to a larger degree.
Credit goes to your original inquiry.
My favorite ancestor is my Great Grandfather, Philip Meyers (aka Maier, Mayer). He immigrated from Germany in the 1850's and settled in Bethlehem, New York, a suburb of Albany. He enlisted in the 3rd NY Volunteer Infantry and served from 1861-1863. At times he served as Company butcher, so I know he ate well. Most of the time he was a Private, but at some point was promoted to Corporal, but he didn't hold that rank for long. Not sure why he lost it, as his service records don't indicate reason for demotion back to Private. He was not injured during the war, but he was later shot in the hand while serving as a "Court Officer" back in Albany. (I haven't yet been able to locate documentation of how that happened.) Viewing his military pension records, however, did reveal that he claimed a disability due to obtaining "piles" from Chicahominy Swamp. (The modern terminology for "piles" is hemorrhoids.)
Besides serving as a Court Officer following the war, he was also a lighthouse tender. My mother would tell us stories of how he lived on an island in the Hudson River. He had pit bull dogs that would catch rabbit and fling them in the air, breaking the rabbits' necks. She'd eat rabbit stew.
I'd love to be able to speak with him and hear his stories. When I meet him in heaven, I will!