Elyse Braxton

As a little girl, I remember seeing "Army trucks" on the Pennsylvania Turnpike to and from Philadelphia to Harrisburg to visit family. I had respect for the military as many in my family served, but there was never pressure or disapproval to join. Military service wasn't even a consideration. Fast forward to the summer of 2002; my flight landed in Philly International and I was struck with "military urges." I jokingly "blame" God, for these urges, because almost no one in their right mind, age 36, would consider joining the military so late in life. But this risk-taking positive thinker, who bought a stick shift before she had her driver's license, got on the path and enlisted in the Naval Reserves in 2003. That same year, I read football players were visiting injured troops in Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany.

Not having the backing of the NFL or a public relations firm didn't deter me from finding a way to serve the troops. I took my first, of several, volunteer vacations through Landstuhl's Pastoral Services to provide troops clothing and toiletry items, as well as company. I cried a fair amount of time, my first trip. They weren't tears of sadness but of adoration. I always wanted a hero; here they were face-to-face. I loved and couldn't get enough of them! It was during my second volunteer vacation, over Christmas 2003, that I was divinely inspired to become a Navy Nurse. My financial and academic stresses PALED in comparison to combat. I kept and keep things in perspective, during my perceived "tough times", for the fact that I'm not getting shot at.

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The motto of my first alma mater, Elizabethown College, is "Educate for Service." Little did I know this would become a way of life for me. First as a volunteer, especially with Special Olympics and the USO, and second as a member of the all-volunteer U.S. Armed Forces. I was humbly the recipient of the 2012 Educate for Service - Service Through Professional Achievement Award, from the alumni association, for service and achievements within and related to various medical areas of the military as well as disaster relief efforts. With further humility, I was granted the 2017 Nursing Leadership Award from the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing, Alpha Nu Chapter of Villanova University. My scope of influence and leadership have grown as I have taken on greater challenges and responsibilities.

Our humility should raise with each promotion as we were once more junior to our current position. My greatest cheerleader and fan, Mom, thinks I should write a book on leadership. What it boils down to is love. Love yourself; love, empower and affirm those you have contact with; address and tough love people's behaviors, don't slam their character; and give and ask for forgiveness. "Lead", "serve", and "forgive" are synonymous with "love." It's our choice to edify or destroy people through our thoughts, words, and actions. Leaders choose wisely.

I've learned more about unconditional love in the military than I have anywhere else. We may not LIKE a person, but we have to LOVE and save them if they fall overboard. The military has provided me the opportunity to meet and work with people I would not have met otherwise for whatever circumstance. We put personal differences aside to meet the mission.

The opportunities to do operational things - like getting submerged in simulated cockpits upside down wearing blackened out goggles, shooting high caliber machine guns for fun, or riding in helicopters and heavy vehicles - are the things dreams are made of, and I got paid to do it! As I slowly descend the mountain of my naval career, I know I will cry when I retire. Work isn't always fun but the people and places, where I have played, have been priceless. I thank God for putting those "military urges" in me so many years ago. I know that if I follow His will rather than try to help Him, He'll continue to do things more amazing than I could ever fathom.