Jaime joined the Air Force to see the world, but instead of going to Japan like her original orders said she ended up in Texas. She had a diverse career in the Air Force and as a military spouse. She worked in the what was then known as the information management but had experiences outside her career field including two deployments. Today she is working as a philanthropic consultant specializing in military giving.
A Diverse Career in the Air Force
Jaime grew up as a miltiary brat with her dad serving in the Army and her mom serving in the Navy. When she graduated high school and wasn’t sure what to do next the military was an obvious choice. Her dad encouraged her to join the Air Force. She was scheduled to leave a few months after going through the recruitment process, but someone dropped their spot leaving an open spot and she ended up leaving a few months early, the same day she found out the spot was open.
After boot camp and tech school she ended up at surprisingly and Army Post instead of the Air Force installation in Japan that she had originally received orders for. But she wasn’t there before long before heading out on her first deployment.
Deploying overseas
She thought she was going to deploy to Iraq but when they got to Al Udeid she was reassigned to be the sole AFSC A1. Her role led to supporting 394 personnel across 25 locations throughout OIF/OEF. Her second deployment did end up being in Iraq. She deployed to Camp Victory, Iraq. There she implemented extensive equipment tracking systems, increasing operations core system access from 33% to 100%. She also shared outside her normal role she had the opportunity to help transport new MRAP to get them out into the field for the soldiers and airmen that needed them.
Leaving Active Duty for the Reserve
After her first enlistment she decided to leave active duty for the Reserve. Her husband was serving as well and after lining up a job she transition out of the miltiary. But her separation led to her husband getting a new assignment and they ended up in Germany. She worked as an Individual Mobilization Augmentee (IMA) working for a 1 Star. She also shared that she and her spouse moved to three different bases in Germany. It made for quite the adventure.
Her last assignment in the Reserve was at Joint Base Charleston. She managed all administrative functions as the sole administrator for the 4th Combat Camera Squadron. She providing crucial support to organizational commanders, senior leaders, and 50 personnel. Her husband was deployed and her work was incredibly complex. Luckily, she was able to find support through the Family Child Care program that allowed her to go TDY and still have childcare support for her then one year old son.
Leaving the Reserve
After that assignment she decided it was time to leave the Reserve. She had a full time job with AmeriCorps and was ready for the next step. As a military spouse eventually they moved and her next assignment was to South Korea where she accompanied her spouse. There she worked for the Red Cross and was working there when the pandemic began. Then she moved to Germany and worked for the USO. It was a great opportunity, but also had challenges when the US evacuated Afghanistan and Germany was the main staging area for military members and refugees. Today, she is working as a consultant in the military giving space.
