The following is a quick preview of an interview with the Syracuse University women’s basketball assistant coach Vonn Reed.
Tell me about your path to joining the military.
I grew up in Wisconsin and joined the U.S. Army about five months after I graduated from high school. Higher education was my ultimate goal and I knew if I served, I could use the G.I. Bill to go to school.
Tell me about where you served and what you did. Why did you pursue that path?
After I enlisted, I did my basic training at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, and advanced individual training at Fort Lee in Virginia. From there I served as a 76 Yankee for four years—which is similar to a supply clerk—serving at Fort Drum right up the road and back at Fort Lee.
What have been some of your most rewarding military experiences?
Of course being able to get my degree after I got out was rewarding but the Army also instilled a high level of discipline in me and really helped me learn to focus on the task at hand. The training I endured was intense and taught me how to persevere through any tough or challenging situation. Those experiences are still with me long after I’ve gotten out the military.