Me and the Military

Why I Joined

I joined the Ohio Army National Guard in July of 2016. I was 18 years old and waiting to start college in August. I had received my first statement of account for college and was beginning to recognize just how expensive my education would be. One of my closest friends and I started talking about the cost, and she brought up the National Guard’s 100% tuition scholarship. I did my research, talked to a recruiter, and within 2 weeks, I had raised my right hand and signed on the dotted line.

College tuition is one of the top reasons that people join the military. However, it isn’t usually a reason that people stay in. I very much have a love-hate relationship with my military experience. I wouldn’t change the experience for the world because it has provided me with so much personal growth, but there have been many non-ideal experiences. Also, even though I didn’t join due to a sense of service, I did discover a passion for it. I have the military to thank for many self-discoveries, including my future career plans.

My Job

My Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) is a Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Specialist (CBRN – pronounced See-Burn). I picked the specialty based on the description on the Army’s website (big mistake) and the false impression that it was a lab-like position that would relate to my biochemistry major. The reality is that my job has a very diverse application in the military – all of which depends on what unit you end up assigned to. I have acted in a lot of different roles due to this diversity. In general, the idea is to be subject matter experts (SMEs) in defense response to different kinds of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs). The extent and capacity of this vary based on the position and missions of your unit. Lab work is essentially unheard of; I’ve been in one lab since starting my career. One neat aspect of my position is hazmat certification, so I do have some civilian-side applicable skills that transfer.

My Experiences

• Decontamination Platoon

My very first unit assignment was the 637th Chemical Company located in Kettering, OH. I was assigned to the Decon 3 platoon. The Decon platoons trained in two capacities; the first was a mass casualty response force for Ohio’s FEMA region as part of the Homeland Response Force (HRF – pronounced Herf). The second was as a “green mission” decontamination team. Green mission refers to military operations, and white mission refers to civilian ones. The HRF is a white mission that trains to assist in events such as chemical explosions or other domestic events. Green mission events use different techniques and standard operating procedures to protect military missions and personnel that might be operating in contaminated environments. This was my position for about a year and a half, from the ranks of Private to Private First Class.

• Strike Team

In 2018-2019, the 637th Chemical Co. deployed to Kuwait to act as Central Command’s CBRN response force. During this deployment, I changed job capacities and platoons. I trained as part of a platoon split into two sections – a recon and a decon section. I was part of the Reconnaissance section. Our job was to enter contaminated spaces, characterize CBRN agents, and collect samples for labs. I was part of both the Initial Entry Team (IET) and the Sampling Team during my time, and I often operated in hazmat gear. The position was interesting and the most application I have done with my job. I was the rank of Specialist for the majority of my time in the position.

 

 

• Reconnaissance Platoon

After returning to the US in late 2019, I was switched to a full Reconnaissance platoon still within the 637th. The company returned to our HRF mission.

• CBRN NCO 

In May of 2020, I was promoted to a new company as a CBRN Noncommissioned Officer for a Combat Engineer Company. The 811th Engineer Company is my current unit. As a line unit, they are combat-focused, unlike my previous company. My position places me out of the main platoons and headquarters, mostly dealing with logistics and operations. As the CBRN NCO, my primary responsibility is to advise the command team on how to complete missions in the event of some sort of CBRN attack. I am also in charge of training the company to protect themselves from such events and how to care for and use any equipment related to CRBN agents. Outside of that role, I fall under our Supply Sergeant and often run/assist in the supply operations to support the unit.

In my last year at the unit, I have been activated for domestic response twice. The first time was during the BLM protests in 2020, and the second was for the 2021 presidential inauguration.

Now

As of now, I have completed 5 years of service. I currently hold the rank of Sergeant and plan to spend the last year of my contract with the 811th. After my contract ends, I will probably get out and become a full civilian. The National Guard requires a lot of time, and I don’t feel that I can commit to medical school while also a service member. However, I’m not sure that this is the end of my service and hope to possibly serve as a medical officer once I complete my medical education.