My Air Force story begins when I was a young child sitting next to my father in his Cessna 172RG. From a very young age, my father would take my mother, my brother and me on weekend trips in his private plane. The first time I got my hands on yellow, I was hooked. I didn't know it at the time, but that love of flying started me on the path to my Air Force career. This would lead me to become an avionics technician, ICBM operator and space tester. I began this journey as a freshman at Washington State University where I walked into the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps building and enrolled as cadet. After two years of college, where I did a lot of partying and little studying, I decided that I needed to experience the world and grow before I finished my studies. So, I enlisted in the Air Force. It turned out that this decision radically changed the course of my life. I showed up at Lackland Air Force Base (AFB), Texas, one morning in March 1996, ready to see the world. And that's exactly what I did. I was assigned as an F-16 avionics technician. I earned Top Graduate in my Electronics Principle Schools and F-16 Avionics Technical Schools before being assigned to Mountain Home AFB, Idaho, for my first mission. Less than a month after arriving at my base, I was on my way to my first deployment to Saudi Arabia. This was the first of a long series of deployments. In fact, during my four years as an enlisted Airman, I spent more time deployed than at my home station, and I loved every minute of it. After seeing a little of the world, I applied for and received an active duty scholarship. to continue my commission again. Three years later, I had earned my bachelor's degree in Operational Infrared System Testing (SBIRS) program. Our mission is to operationally test the Air Force's new SBIRS acquisitions. This is an extremely large and complex system that will be implemented in several stages over the next decade. Currently, my team and I are developing a plan to test the Air Force's newest SBIRS satellite. The SBIRS Geostationary Earth Orbit -1 (GEO-1) is scheduled to launch in December this year. It is our responsibility to test the system to ensure that the product the Air Force is paying for meets all required technical specifications. So far in my Air Force career, I have been an avionics technician, ICBM operator and a space tester. It has taken me from destinations all over the world, to bunkers deep within the earth, and now to the skies above. I can't wait to see where this takes me next.