Following the Call to Serve Again
This Veterans Day, we reflect on our colleagues who served the country through the U.S. military before joining our mission to save lives at USAID.
When U.S. Army General Jonathan Wainwright discharged his troops following the end of World War II, he encouraged them to “start being a leader as soon as you put on your civilian clothes.” Seeking a sense of purpose and mission is a common desire for military veterans when they leave the service. So, it’s not a surprise when many find their way to USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA).
While these two worlds might at first seem to exist at opposite ends of a spectrum, there are values, principles, and a commitment to the mission that overlap between the uniformed military services and the civilian-led humanitarian work done and supported by USAID.
Principally, it is the overwhelming desire to work in the service of others that motivates those veterans who choose a career with USAID.
On this Veterans Day, meet just a few of the vets who have found another way to serve.
Felicia Long, U.S. Air Force Reserve (1995- 2011) / Now: Senior Advisor, Capacity Building & Organizational Development
“As a medical professional in the Air Force Reserves, I carried the Red Cross armband instead of a weapon. My focus was ensuring that military members not only had the mental wellness to safely return to duty, but more importantly, the ability to return home to their families and lead productive lives in the community.
“During my service, I supported humanitarian missions of rebuilding and restructuring civilian hospitals in underserved communities, where the waiting lists for medical care, including mental health services, was several years long due to a lack of professional staff and services. I aided people who were struggling with personal addictions, domestic violence, and other mental health conditions. However, my most noted role was as the Squadron Suicide Prevention Manager, which not only allowed me to provide direct care to service members who were trying to cope with their personal stressors, but also educate leadership and fellow airmen on the importance of taking care of one another.
“Much like my role in the military, the mission of BHA aligned with my personal values. I enjoy helping others and helping people learn to help others. In my role as a training and development professional within BHA, I found another opportunity to help people be skilled and ready for duty.”
Andrew Moffitt, U.S. Army (2005–2009) / Now: Operational Planning Team Leader
“I joined the army in a leave of absence from the fire department — I was already a firefighter in Prince George’s County, Maryland. It sounds trite, but I joined because of 9/11. I was on the first due engine on the third alarm at the terrorist attack on the Pentagon; we were the first crew to bring hose lines into the building from the courtyard, and operated for seven hours. When life circumstances allowed it, I took a leave of absence and I did four years active duty in the army, with two tours in Iraq as a medic in an infantry platoon.
“The military gives you a lot of personal resilience. More often than not, you find yourself working in an environment you can’t control. In an infantry platoon, it’s like, ‘I’m sleeping in the rain tonight — that’s what’s happening.’ It lets you accept things that you don’t have control over…I don’t think that you can undervalue having grit to deal with the friction of the environments that we work in [at USAID], be it austerity in a place that has been affected by a disaster or just the challenge of the job itself.
“Being able to understand what the mission is, what your role is in that mission, and then bring together the team that you’re working alongside to be able to accomplish that mission — despite all of the things not going according to plan… Those are just baked into you by military training and military experience. And I think that carries over to this job.
“I think that fire rescue, military service, and now working at USAID is just a continuation of the same thing: How do you work in challenging environments to try to have a positive impact?”
Frances Fierst, U.S. Army (1992–1995) / Now: Support Relief Group Generalist
“I’m the youngest of six kids, and five out of the six kids in my family joined the military in one way, shape, or form to help pay for school. I had three older sisters who were Army officers and so it was a pretty natural thing for me to follow in their footsteps. I got a 4-year Army ROTC scholarship and I studied mechanical engineering. When I graduated, I went on active duty as a second lieutenant in the Army. I served overseas in Germany.
“When I came back to the U.S., I started working in the private sector as a manufacturing engineer for the next 10 years. The transformational event in my life was when an organization called Engineers Without Borders happened to open up an office next to us. That’s how I became aware of the development world. Within a few years, I had quit my private sector job, gotten a master’s degree in Engineering for Developing Communities and then, in 2008, started working for USAID in Afghanistan on a Provincial Reconstruction Team. I have been working in the development and humanitarian sector ever since.
“During my first 3 years with BHA, I traveled around and taught the Joint Humanitarian Operations Course (JHOC) to service members. The biggest thing that I remember about JHOCs is afterward, there’s 30 people that want to talk to you about, ‘How do I work for USAID when I get out?’ I think a lot of people want to serve their country but don’t necessarily want to carry a gun. The military and development/humanitarian worlds may seem like polar opposites. However, I think we all share a common desire to serve our country and to be of service to others.
“We are all patriots, we just chose to serve in different ways.”
Mara M. Langevin, U.S. Coast Guard (1991–2001) / Now: Humanitarian Assistance Advisor to the Military
“I chose the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) because I felt its mission aligned with my personality, especially within the Coast Guard’s aviation field. In Coast Guard Aviation, the primary mission is search and rescue. I couldn’t imagine anything more rewarding than pulling a person out of the ocean and saving them from peril. After my first rescue, I had such a feeling of satisfaction that I knew I wanted to devote my life to helping others and saving lives. I served 10 years in the USCG, flying search and rescue missions as a helicopter aircraft commander, and was completely fulfilled, both personally and professionally.
“From my experiences, one notable difference is that Coast Guard assistance and rescue missions typically involve a few people having more direct contact with the people being saved. In contrast, during a response with BHA, we provide assistance to whole communities, possibly saving thousands of lives.
“With BHA, my engagement has broadened to work with many different partners such as NGOs and UN organizations as well as U.S. and partner country militaries. Interestingly, I’ve actually traveled to more military bases with my current position as a Humanitarian Assistance Advisor to the Military over the last three years with BHA than I ever did during my 10 years in the U.S. Coast Guard.”
Cate Klepacki, U.S. Air Force (2001- 2014) / Now: Senior Humanitarian Policy and Program Advisor, Humanitarian Policy Team
“I’m from the Midwest — I grew up in Chicago. Watching Desert Shield and Desert Storm unfold as a teenager, I saw joining the military as a way to help people impacted by conflict. I’d had a passion for flying since I was small, and the Air Force seemed like a way that I could do both. I commissioned in May 2001 just before September 11th happened and, of course, it changed most everything for most everyone.
“Military service allowed me to travel to places I had never imagined, and the people that I had met along the way really influenced my way of thinking. My curiosity expanded and I started to understand the importance of other ways of serving those in need. Knowing my military service commitment would come to an end in January of 2014, I had some time to plan what would come next. And I knew that I wanted to do humanitarian work.
“I really appreciate having come to this work with a military background and having been afforded so many opportunities to work side-by-side with those who come to the work with a humanitarian background. We sometimes see things from different perspectives, but in a really complimentary way.
“Most of the veterans I know have continued serving in their professional life or have pursued volunteer opportunities in their personal life. Like many of the veterans I know, for humanitarians, service is a way of life — and I don’t think any of us would have it any other way.”
