SSG Victoria Ryan, U.S. Army (1973-1988)

When I enlisted in the Army in 1973, I was almost two months past my 23rd birthday, about five years older than the majority of enlistees. I already had five years of work experience in general administration and communications with New York Telephone Company.

Because of my strong typing skills and speed, I was assigned the primary MOS of 71B (clerk typist). As time went on and I achieved a higher rank, the MOS was automatically upgraded to 71L (administrative specialist).

While on active duty, I held various positions: Company clerk, librarian assistant, intelligence administrative specialist, and casualty operations NCO, just to name a few.

During my first reenlistment, I applied for and was awarded a secondary MOS of 81E (illustrator). This was primarily based on college art courses and my interest in pursuing an art-related field in the future. No military training in this MOS was offered or provided to me, and I never had the opportunity to utilize it while on active duty.

However, after my formal retirement, I utilized military opportunities for my art education, expounding on my secondary MOS. I have been able to create painted landscapes, which I have successfully marketed and generated revenue from.

When I reentered civilian life after over 14 years on active duty, I was in my second marriage and had a very young son. For these and financial reasons, opportunities for continued education and pursuing another career field were virtually non-existent. After spending numerous years in administrative support in the Army, it felt natural for me to pursue similar positions once I left military life. As it turned out, this was near the time computers began appearing in business and in home computing environments. It became necessary to familiarize myself with their capabilities in order to fulfill higher-level administrative positions, which I readily did.

From that time until my complete retirement from the working world, I held an array of positions in the insurance, medical support, and pharmaceutical industries. I achieved the title of Executive Assistant at several Fortune 500 corporations, supporting the highest level of executives, many of whom worked remotely. I handled numerous and diverse responsibilities for as many as 18 to 20 executives at one time.

The military taught me the importance of organization and attention to detail. These were the cornerstones of my success as an Executive Assistant, and to think, it all started at my first duty station, Fort Dix, NJ, when I was assigned to Company B, Headquarters Command, as a clerk typist in my early 20s.

Read the Military Memories of our Runner-Ups.