I am currently a Senior in the Aviation Management Technology with minors in General Business, History, and Military Science and Leadership. I started here at Eastern in the Fall of 2010 and will be graduating this August. I have a really packed Winter semester... I'm enrolled in 12 credits at Eastern, a Senior Seminar at UofM, and Physics II at Schoolcraft. Needless to say, this semester is going to be interesting!
As for my background, I was born and raised in Novi, Michigan. Since graduating from Novi High in 2004, I have done my fair share of going from school to school. I enrolled at University of Michigan Dearborn right after high school. My first semester, I was a full-time student and worked 50 hours a week. I worked for my dad and chose work over school. It would have been great, but I forgot to withdraw from the semester so my GPA was horrible. The following May, I decided to enroll in the Gemological Institute of America in Carlsbad, CA. My family is in the jewelry business and I loved the idea of going into the family business. After completing the course, I came back to work for my parents. Six months later, I felt like I needed something more. It was at this point that I decided to join the Navy.
In January of 2007, I left for bootcamp. By December 2007, I had completed my technical schools for E-2C Aviation Structural Mechanics and returned from a deployment to Norfolk, VA. In May '08, I advanced to E-4 and, over the next year and a half, continued to obtain qualifications for my shops. I went on a number of detachments with my squadron, going to Fallon, Key West twice, and Beaufort. In November 2009 I was selected for an enlisted to commissioning program and then, a few weeks later, found out I advanced to E-5. That brings me to where I am today. I am really looking forward to graduation this summer and then commissioning. After the events of the summer, I will be transferring down to Pensacola, FL for Naval Flight School. I hope to eventually make my way back to the E-2/C-2 community.
As for the more "personal" side of me, I am living in Novi again with my 5-year old Golden Retriever, Charlie (who is a girl... think Top Gun call signs), my boyfriend, and my brother. The living situation is interesting but it proves to be an adventure every day! Charlie is an amazing dog with a ridiculous personality. She knows how to cheer me up, tug on my heart, and pretend like she can't hear me... she has been the one constant in my life from Virginia back to Michigan. I am a lover of sports; I love hockey, am a season ticket holder for the Lions, and will sit in the scorching sun for a Tigers game any day. Many people find this strange, but my favorite de-stressing activity is going to the range and shooting my rifle. I didn't realize how much I loved the state of Michigan until I left for the Navy. Sitting on a dock with a fishing pole, camping, walking on the beaches of Lake Michigan, and seeing Michigan's changing of colors in the Autumn are just a few things that make me smile!
