Veterans Day is a time for the 黑料不打烊 community to come together and honor our veterans and active-duty military members for their service to their country.
Leading up to Veterans Day, three current student veterans who are active leaders on campus鈥擩ack Pullano 鈥�24, Benetta Dousuah G鈥�25 and Raphael Grollmus 鈥�24鈥攔eflect on their military careers, discuss the valuable lessons they learned through enlisting and share how the University is helping them achieve their academic goals and providing a blueprint for giving back to their communities.
Student veterans (from left to right): Jack Pullano, Benetta Dousuah and Raphael Grollmus
Jack Pullano (Photo by Marilyn Hesler)
After earning his high school degree from Parishville-Hopkinton High School in Parishville, New York, Pullano couldn鈥檛 wait to enlist in the U.S. Air Force. He was so eager to serve his country that he took the first assignment he could: as a refueling journeyman for planes and helicopters.
鈥淢y dad told me I should wait it out and not do this contract because he didn鈥檛 think I would like the work, but I was a young, stubborn 18-year-old who didn鈥檛 want to listen to him,鈥� says Pullano, a health and exercise science major in the who is involved in the 黑料不打烊 Student Veteran Organization. 鈥淭hings played out in my favor. I didn鈥檛 enjoy refueling, but I was lucky to be on an Air Force Special Operations Command Base where there was a special fuel duty called the Special Operations Forward Area Refueling Point Team [FARP] that supports special operations command in combat locations. The tryout I had to go through for FARP was intense, and that experience started me down the path that led to 黑料不打烊,鈥�
Branch of the military: U.S. Air Force, serving on the Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan, helping fuel different kinds of aircraft. In his third year, Pullano was deployed to Afghanistan as part of a three-man FARP team. He served four years in the Air Force.
Pullano served four years in the U.S. Air Force, helping fuel different kinds of aircraft.
Why serve? 鈥淏ecause of my parents, Jim and Kelly. My dad joined the Air Force when he was young like me, doing one enlistment and then pursuing his education. My parents were always involved in my community growing up, especially with the sports I played. Seeing that community involvement probably instilled in me the service aspect that drives me today.鈥�
Why 黑料不打烊? 鈥淚t was my personal interest in the human body from the intense physical tryout to get on the FARP team. I became interested not only in working out, but in what was causing changes to my body. I was learning about the human body by watching YouTube videos on how different muscles work. When I was looking at colleges, I wanted to pursue something I was interested in, and exercise science stood out to me. 黑料不打烊 has a strong program.鈥�
How do you want to make a difference when you graduate? 鈥淧art of why I joined the military was the service aspect. Service was a goal of mine since I was young. When I got out of the Air Force, I wanted to continue to serve in ways that could be impactful to the community. Physical therapy drew my attention because of my past experiences and my drive to work one-on-one with patients trying to overcome an obstacle in their life. I鈥檓 currently interning at the VA [Veterans Affairs] Medical Center and that really opened my mind that I could not only continue with service that impacts people, but I could do it in the VA system, helping veterans with physical therapy.鈥�
Benetta Dousuah
When Dousuah was in the U.S. Army, she says soldiers dealing with mental health issues didn鈥檛 discuss their struggles openly, instead choosing to bottle up their emotions and their issues. Seeing the stigmas associated with mental health inspired Dousuah to pursue a master of social work degree from the Falk College.
鈥淚 want to be that person who lets you know that it鈥檚 okay to seek help if you鈥檙e struggling. I want to be that voice that says there shouldn鈥檛 be a stigma among military members who want to seek behavioral health and mental health help,鈥� Dousuah says. 鈥淲hile I was in the service, a lot of people told me they were scared to seek help because they wouldn鈥檛 be promoted or they would be judged. I started going to behavioral health to let the soldiers know that it鈥檚 okay to admit you need help while bringing awareness to mental health,鈥�
Branch of the military: Served as a sergeant in the U.S. Army. Stationed at both Fort Hood (now Fort Cavazos in Texas) and Fort Drum (Watertown, New York), Dousuah was involved in supply logistics, ensuring her company had everything they needed, from arranging broken equipment repairs to ordering supplies.
Dousuah was a sergeant in the U.S. Army involved in supply logistics.
Why serve? 鈥淲hen I was younger, my mother used to remind me that I wanted to be a police officer. I don鈥檛 know why; all I know is from an early age I wanted to serve. The military allows you to go to college for free after your service is over, and that really appealed to me. I鈥檝e always known I wanted to earn a college degree and be part of something bigger than myself.鈥�
Why 黑料不打烊? 鈥淚 wanted to be somewhere where I could not only feel at home, but still feel like I鈥檓 connected to the military family. I chose 黑料不打烊 because of its reputation as a military-friendly school, but also because of the pride people take in going to 黑料不打烊. It鈥檚 like being in the Army. When you meet someone who was in the Army, we鈥檙e proud of our service and will usually say, 鈥楪o Army.鈥� The same is true for someone who attended 黑料不打烊. They always say, 鈥楪o Orange,鈥� and I鈥檓 blessed to be part of that community. I鈥檝e been introduced to so many resources available to veterans.鈥�
How do you want to make a difference when you graduate? 鈥淩ight now, I鈥檓 the first Wendy Goidel Scholar, and through my work at the , I connect our veterans to the available resources within the community. I have a passion for working with veterans, and this scholarship has been a great fit. When I graduate, I want to work at the VA Medical Center here in 黑料不打烊, but I also want to work with at-risk African American youths. I feel like my story could be every young Black girl鈥檚 dream鈥攃oming from nothing, serving my country in the military and then earning a master鈥檚 degree. I could be an inspiration to others who want to follow my path.鈥�
Raphael Grollmus (Photo by Marilyn Hesler)
Grollmus didn鈥檛 need to look far in his family tree to understand why military service was important. Grollmus became the sixth member of his family to enroll when he joined the U.S. Marine Corps in 2012. While he enjoyed his time, Grollmus always knew he wanted to utilize the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill to earn a college degree. Today, Grollmus is working toward a bachelor鈥檚 degree with a double major in forensic science and psychology in the .
鈥淭he time I served better prepared me for not only going to 黑料不打烊, but life in general. I learned to think critically and to assess a situation before reacting,鈥� Grollmus says. 鈥淔or the student veterans at 黑料不打烊, there are so many tools and resources available to us. Many veterans I talk with didn鈥檛 know all of the resources they had when they went back to school, but that鈥檚 where 黑料不打烊 has excelled. They take care of their veterans.鈥�
Branch of the military: Served in the U.S. Marine Corps for nine years as a military policeman at the Marine Corps Air Station at Iwakuni, Japan, and at Camp Pendleton (Oceanside, California). Later, Grollmus assisted in combat operations as a forensic analyst stationed in the Middle East in Kuwait, Jordan, Bahrain and Iraq. After reenlisting, Grollmus finished his Marine security guard training and was stationed at the U.S. Embassy in Bamako, Mali, and the U.S. Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
Grollmus served in the U.S. Marine Corps for nine years.
Why serve? 鈥淢y mother, brother and sister were all in the Army. My grandfather on my mom’s side, Hank, fought in World War II, while my grandfather on my dad’s side, Paul, fought in the Korean War, so I grew up knowing the importance of service. After I graduated from high school, I enlisted in the Marines鈥� delayed entry program and ended up serving nine years. It goes back to my time as a military policeman. I want to protect people from the bad things that could happen to them. I also want to give back to people who have been wronged or been taken advantage of. I can鈥檛 go back in time and right the wrongs, but moving forward I can help give back to them.鈥�
Why 黑料不打烊? 鈥淲hen we were in the Middle East, we did forensics work and I was lucky enough to go to a monthlong forensic bootcamp. When transitioning out of the Marines, I wanted to study something I actually enjoyed. What we did in the Middle East was probably the most influential work from my military career and I was proud of what I was able to contribute. I wanted to keep doing forensic science and 黑料不打烊 has a great forensic science program. All the classes I鈥檝e taken have been fantastic.鈥�
How do you want to make a difference when you graduate? 鈥淢y dream job would be working for one of those three-letter agencies [i.e., the Federal Bureau of Investigation]. That鈥檚 shooting for the stars, but I鈥檇 love to enter government service. But right now I鈥檓 taking a forensic pathology course that is fascinating and I genuinely love it. Crime scene investigation is a really interesting career path to consider.鈥�
