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  • “… She never took ‘no’ for an answer…”

    “Women are often treated differently in both my military and civilian career fields, since they are male-dominated. I’m an equipment operator here, working with heavy machinery, and I’m a geologist on the civilian side. We, as women, have to grow tough skin and show people we can do the work just as

  • “… Saw it as a way out…”

    Promoting to chief master sergeant was an indescribable moment for Martez D. Banks, 940th Operations Group superintendent. He felt fortunate to accept such a trusted position, however, he never planned to climb so high up the ranks.“It wasn’t a relief,” he said, explaining how pinning on chief was

  • “… Looking forward to a new start …”

    “I’ve had a lot to overcome in the past couple years. In 2016, I was tested for a gene linked to breast cancer, called the BRCA 1 mutation, since multiple women in my family have battled it. After testing positive and being told I had a very high risk for developing breast cancer by age 40, I

  • “…They’re the reason I do anything…”

    “I was first assigned to Beale when I was active-duty. I was, and still am, an aircraft maintenance officer. I wanted to settle down and start a family, so I transferred to the Reserve. Now, I have been married for eight years and am a father of two. My wife loves Thanksgiving. We moved to a bigger

  • “…‘Til they can’t walk anymore …”

    “My uncle used to scare my siblings and me when we were younger every Halloween. He would always buy these unique, limited edition-type masks and come out when we weren’t expecting it. One of my favorite Halloween memories was the time I got him back. I put on the wolf mask I had for my costume, hid

  • "... I'm working my way up..."

    “One thing I’m really into these days is weightlifting. I started about nine months ago and am working toward my first competition early next year. My journey started in high school when I was bullied and turned to food for comfort. I eventually was able to replace that with fitness. I got a job as

  • “… We had to make our own fun…”

    “I grew up in Rotorua, New Zealand, and lived there until I was 19 years old. My three brothers and I were always outside playing with our neighbors. On a normal day we would eat breakfast at seven, be out with our friends by eight and not come home until our dad whistled for dinner. We lived in a

  • “… It’s more than a sport…”

    One of my favorite things in life is soccer. I grew up a military brat, with both parents in the Air Force. We were stationed overseas until I was 8 years old. While we were in England, my dad taught me how to play soccer and I have been playing ever since. After we moved back to the states, I

  • "… It wasn't my dream to become a pilot…"

    “My childhood dream was to become a racecar driver or an astronaut. When I was in sixth grade, my class made a time capsule and a friend of mine wrote he was convinced I would become a NASCAR driver. But reality set in. After high school, I wasn’t firmly committed to college, so I joined the Air

  • "... The passing rate is about seven percent..."

    "I began my military career in the Army, working in infantry, and loved it. I earned a lot of respect being the only private (PV1) in my unit to be airborne-qualified and to have my expert infantry badge. To earn the badge, I completed and passed a week’s worth of testing, ranging from day and night