Necole served in the Royal Canadian Air Force for 35 years and achieved the rank of Chief Warrant Officer. In this interview she shared her road to joining the military as a military police officer, the challenge of being gay in the military, and gives powerful advice and tools to help you in whatever life stage you are in. She is also the author of Pride amid Prejudice available on Amazon.
Serving in the Royal Canadian Air Force
Necole came out of the womb knowing she wanted to serve in the military. She never wavered from that decision even when she had to wait almost four years for the career field of Military Police (MP) to open up so that she could join. Finally, the day came that she received a call to join. She headed off to 13 weeks of recruit training, then six months of language training, and finally six months of training to be an MP. Her first assignment was in a French Province that allowed her to learn French. Although challenging it was the best place for her to be.
Next, she went to the training school and because of her deep understanding of both French and English she helped create the training that had only been in English into French. She also taught it in French as well.
Staying focused on her goal
She knew she wanted to be a Chief Warrant Officer so she ensured that there wasn’t a reason they could not promote her. Being a woman and part of the LGBTQ+ community she knew that she would face discrimination. So, she worked hard to ensure that everything that she needed to be done was completed. She also credits her success to having both male and female mentors. Women of the Military podcast recently focused on mentorship in episode 277.
Getting to the Top
When she made it to her final rank of Chief Warrant Officer there were only seven other members the same rank. She was the only woman. Those last three years were very challenging because she didn’t have a voice. She had a seat at the table but no one listened to her. She couldn’t get momentum and was regularly outvoted for things she did not agree with. It was very hard. But it also led her to start writing. She couldn’t make change at the table so she wrote her story.
Pride Amid Prejudice
She wrote her book Pride amid Prejudice to share the story of her life. She even opened up about her mental health and challenges she faced growing up. She was also essentially living a double life. On the outside at work everything looked fine, but on the inside she struggled. Struggling with alcoholism and working an extreme amount to ensure that no one would be able to see any cracks in her armor.
