Kerry prepares for retirement as a Veteran with sights on new adventures
Kerry is a Veteran currently serving in the Army National Guard going on 28 years and is set to retire in February 2026. With a career change on the horizon, Kerry came into DFSA to prepare for the civilian workforce with travel plans in her near future.
She joined the Army when she was 19 where she served for two years, left for 13 years, then returned to serve again in 2001. Fast forward to today, Kerry has spent nearly two decades working in logistics throughout her experience.
When asked about what’s stood out most in her career, Kerry shared about her time living in Afghanistan in 2005 where she became familiar with the culture there. As a mom to an 18 year old who is starting college next year, Kerry anticipates an opportunity to travel with her youngest daughter and explore different regions.
A fan of the outdoors, Kerry’s first stop is a solo trip to Europe in September where she plans to walk the Portuguese route of the popular Camino de Santiago. She visited Italy last year and hopes to explore Europe for a month in celebration of her closing this important chapter in her career.
Kerry is originally from Seattle and mom to three children — all of whom she hopes to see more often including her grandson. In the meantime, she is planning her next career move: ideally a contract government or hospitality role that allows her to use transferable skills. Kerry shares, “The unknown of it all is intimidating. The civilian workforce feels like starting all over.”
She was initially looking for somewhere to get a headshot for her LinkedIn and found DFSA that way. She is already referencing the organization to other Veterans. There are other programs for Veterans (like the USO Transition Program) that Kerry was aware of, but found DFSA to be convenient and timely for her needs. She’s already taking advantage of a free LinkedIn Premium Subscription thanks to their wonderful 12 month program that supports Veterans in building their networks.
Kerry left her first DFSA appointment feeling motivated that we offer Veteran Support that she can utilize in the months leading to her retirement from the Army. Her goal is to obtain a role that provides supplemental income while still giving her the ability to enjoy the things she loves to do: hiking, experiencing different cultures, and seeing the many sights in nature. She’s no stranger to travel having lived in places like Japan through her work and hopes to continue adventuring in other ways.
Thank you for your service Kerry!