A Transition Story; from deployed to employed.

By Darrell A. Melrose

 

 First of all, thank you for visiting Vets 2day. I have started this blog as a way to dispense and exchange advise for todays very diverse Military experiences. I began my Military career in 1989, as a member of the US Air Force (as evidence of the photo above) as an HVAC tech. That is me, seated, first row far right. I completed 4 yrs. of honorable active duty service in that Cold War/ Post-Cold War period. I then moved back to Illinois, and transitioned into the US Air Force Reserves, and began utilizing my education benefits.

In 1995 My Reserve unit was hit by the Base Re-alignment and Closure (BRAC). As an E4, I could not afford to follow the unit to its new re-location, so I opted to go on the IRR list instead. I wanted to continue drilling, so I approached an Army National Guard recruiter about joining the unit in the town where I resided at the time. They would be "thrilled to have me" she said. All I had to do was go to basic training, and...WHOA WHOA WHOA! What? I had just served 4 years of active duty, and 2 years of active reserves. Yes, but that was Air Force, and this is the Army.

No, thanks! So, for the next decade I went on with my life as a civilian. I did become gainfully employed while attending Northern Illinois University, working as a Student Aid for the US Army Corps of Engineers (one of my favorite jobs to this day). After graduating I got on as a sales rep for a manufacturer. After 911 the market took a hit and so sales went south, and I ended up moving from one sales position to another until I was downsized one time too many in 2005. I had become enthused with decorative concrete, and I started a contracting business in 2005.

Being self-employed you have to develop your own retirement plan. I was making decent income, but I had no health or life insurance, and no 401K etc. I got to thinking about the military again, but by now I was in my mid-30s and I did not want to go in and be an E4, so I made some calls to some recruiters, and inquired about getting commissioned. Long story short, I joined the Illinois Army National Guard, and after going through Blue to Green school, and OCS I received my commission in March 2007.

Before deploying to Iraq in 2009-2010, as a member of the Illinois Army National Guard, I was a self-employed decorative concrete contractor.  I had been a contractor for about five years, and I really enjoyed it a great deal. When I returned from Iraq it was May of 2010, which was a little too late in the season for attending home shows, which is how I would normally meet my customers and book jobs for the season. So, when I received a call from Illinois National Guard Headquarters with an opportunity to be a project officer to stand up a joint task force for homeland security, I took it. That position lasted for a year and then I was asked to be a project officer to start an Employment Initiative Program for Reserve Component Service Members. Eventually this transitioned into the Department of Defense Hero 2 Hired program, where I am currently the Case Manager for the state of Illinois.

So, in the 2 decades I have ‘made a living’ in several ways and I have learned a great deal in the process. In fact throughout my adult life I have had many occupations, and through it all I have learned to not get hung up on labels and definitions.  What you do is not as important as doing something; (for most of us, doing nothing is not an option).  So, by the accumulation of my training and experience I would like to take this opportunity to pass on what I have learned over the past twenty plus years about occupation, employment and ‘ Making a Living’. The following advice may go against much of conventional wisdom on 'employment' and 'making a living'.

 

Military transition is a phrase that is thrown around a lot lately, but what exactly does it mean? Well, it means something different to everybody. For the Service Member coming off of a single enlistment it means something completely different than for a career active duty SM.  Then there are all of the varieties of Reserve and Guard members such as traditional, Active Duty Guard and Reserve (AGR) and full-time technicians, and  let's not forget ADOS "Guard Bums", those SM's that go from one set of ADOS orders to the next. (no offense intended, still legitimate employment).

Going forward I will discuss my opinions on the transition experience, and I would very much like to hear from others on their opinions. Please, be brutally honest, but keep it respectful, and if at all possible try to make recommendations for improvement.