hometown hero

Vanessa is a proud 2011 & 2012 St. Bonaventure graduate, completing both her Bachelor’s and her Master’s degrees. She bleeds both brown and Orange, having been a Syracuse fan her entire life and a current season ticket holder. She returned to Syracuse in 2016 and currently works at the Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF) at Syracuse University and is working towards her second Master’s degree at the S.I. Newhouse School of Communications.

United States Navy Mass Communications Specialist 2nd Class Michael Zingaro hails from Syracuse, New York. He enlisted in the Navy in 2015 and completed boot camp later that year.

Katie Piston is the spouse of Navy Veteran Daniel Piston, but her connections to the military began long before she met her husband. She grew up outside of Chicago, IL and is the proud granddaughter of a WWII Veteran.

Syracuse University Air Force ROTC Cadet Daniel Pesci is the Squadron Commander in the 535th Cadet Wing at Syracuse University.  He was first introduced to the possibility of commissioning in the Armed Forces in 4th grade on a family vacation to Colorado, where he visited the United States Air Force Academy.

Jillian Johansen enlisted in the United States Navy on August 24, 2003 from Kansas City, Missouri. She served in the Navy for ten (10) years as a Yeoman First Class Petty Officer, Aviation Warfare Specialist until her discharge on March 1st, 2013.

Kathryn E. Holm reported to her first duty assignment with the USS Constitution, at Charlestown Navy Yard, Charlestown, Mass., where she was the Deputy Public Affairs Officer, Social Media Director and Webmaster.

Specialist Myles Shoemaker hails from Great Mills, Maryland. He enlisted in the United States Army in September 2015 as an 11-Bravo, Infantryman, and attended one-unit training at Fort Benning Georgia.