“I joined to pay for college. After graduating in 2003, I went right to my unit and then to Iraq. I commanded a platoon of truck drivers. Almost eighteen years later, I’m still here and I’m currently a Lieutenant Colonel (O-5). In 2018 I became the aide-de-camp to General Joseph Votel, who was the commander of Central Command (CENTCOM) at the time. I traveled with him all over the theater of operations to support the troops, both training other nations’ forces and fighting the Global War on Terror. I’m the oldest of three girls and one of my sisters, Christine, here to my right, also served.

Vets are such a part of the American fabric. Most of us, even the wounded, aren’t the broken characters we are sometimes portrayed as. I mean, I’ve been through some things, divorce and normal things, but all in all I’m really happy with my choices and the support given to us soldiers. Veterans graduating from some of these schools can help change that conversation and that broken character stereotype.”