Where did you serve and what did you do?

I served in the Air Force and the Michigan Air National Guard from 2015 to 2023. I was a Supply Technician and supported the A-10s at Davis-Monthan AFB, and while deployed overseas at Incirlik AB with the 447th Air Expeditionary Group in support of Operation Inherent Resolve. As supply, I also maintained deployment gear and weapons that were utilized in deployment locations across the globe. I was part of a team that supported the largest deployment to ever come out of Davis-Monthan with over 1,000+ members of the 354th Bulldog Fight Squadron. With the Air National Guard, I was a member of the 217th Air Operations Group out of Battle Creek Air National Guard base. I was working among some of the most incredible people stateside and at AOC with the 603rd in Ramstein, Germany. In 2020 I volunteered to be part of a team where we COVID tested and provided care for over 19,500 Michigan residents within 60 days. We lived in and out of hotel rooms and traveled nearly every day to a different part of the state.

Tell us how your dog is helping you continue Still Serving in your community.

I rescued “Mya” my 7-year-old German Shepherd/Chow mix from Pima Animal Care Center in Tucson, Arizona the spring of 2017 when my anxiety and depression spiked. I had always had animals and loved them, so I knew a dog would help. I had never been known to be depressed or to have any sort of mental health issues, and it uprooted and changed my life. Mya saved me. She was my rock through my deployment overseas, a nasty break-up, a sexual assault, a cross-county move back home, college, buying my first home, mental health changes, a drinking issue, and a dui.. she was there through it all. She brought me back to life when things were bad and helped me tackle my problems head-on. When she passed on July 4, 2022, it destroyed me. But looking back, I wouldn’t have made it through half of the stuff I did if she wasn’t there, keeping me going and the little time on Earth I had with her was more than I could ever want. I am honestly so lucky. She was there for me in my darkest days, and now I do the same for others. I’m a Veteran Service Office and nothing brings me more joy than helping people through some of the hardest things they have gone through and getting them connected to the resources they need.

Why do you do it?

I do it all for her. Anybody who knows me knows how important she was to me. She meant everything. Miss you My!