Service Branch: USAF
Years of Service: 27
Would you like to share any details of your military history, awards you may have received or other accomplishments?
I believe the most significant thing I can share about my military career, is my commitment to core values. My military career allowed me to travel extensively and live in several amazing countries in Europe and Korea. I realize I love being around people, and want to enrich their life. My military career reinforced the meaning of giving.
Please take a moment to reflect on your thoughts when considering your service uniform. What does your service uniform represent to you?
The uniform represents a very special family and historical legacy. I’m fortunate to have had family members that served in every war since the Revolutionary War. So putting on the uniform was very special to me, and I wore it with pride.
Teamwork is essential across many contexts in life. Please share how your service in the military cultivated an appreciation for the value of teamwork. Do you draw from these experiences, or what similarities exist, when working within teams at the DOE?
There is an old saying, “Teamwork makes the dream work!” I’ve found this to be true at several levels. The mission at DOE is very diverse, and requires unique and specialized skills. The strength of DOE relies on the diversity of our workforce. I am honored to be a part of DOE, and I attempt to emphasize my commitment to DOE and our nation, with everyone I meet.
Military service can have a profound and lasting impact on those who serve. Your perspective is unique in having seen both the military and the civilian sides of service. What story could you share of service before self?
There are several stories I could share, but will narrow it down to this one. Once while attending an airshow in Germany, there was a plane crash, and debris was falling from the sky, causing people to panic and run for cover. Several people were injured from being trampled. Instead of running to safety, I remained behind to provide first aid to the injured. I had recently returned from a deployment, so my training was fresh, and truly came in handy.
What inspired your interest the agency, and how did your prior service prepare you to join the DOE’s workforce?
Throughout most of my military career, I was assigned nuclear security duties. I spent much of my early career assigned to Strategic Air Command, who was solely responsible for safeguarding and maintaining the nuclear fleet for the Air Force. This initial training and experience in this area, equipped me with unique skills to serve in DOE. I now leverage that experience as I conduct my daily interactions, and complete the many tasks required in performing the DOE mission. I firmly believe my military career gave me my initial introduction to appreciating the DOE mission.
Your talents contribute to an innovative and vibrant scientific ecosystem important for matters of national security, energy technologies, and economic prosperity. How does your role, whether directly or indirectly, allow the agency to continue push the frontiers of science?
My current role as the Deputy Associate Under Secretary for Security offers me the rare opportunity to ensure our DOE facilities are safe, storage areas secure, and working areas free from obstructions and distractions that would stifle productivity. Regardless of the assigned mission, my role is to DOE’s assets are safe and secure. It does not get much better than this!
