Military Appreciation Month!

May is Military Appreciation Month and Progressive has been making a pretty big deal out of it which is fun to see. All month they have been featuring veterans and their stories.
Here is my feature!
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Tell me about yourself and your family:


Donnie Hance and Lisa Boyd- we met in 2003 when we were both deployed to Bagram AFB, Afghanistan. I was in the Iowa Army National Guard and he was on Active Duty, had been stationed at Fort Bragg, NC. I met Donnie when he was the Flight Engineer on my very first CH-47 Chinook helicopter ride. We dated and had a long distance relationship once getting back, I was still living in Iowa and he was now stationed at Fort Rucker, AL. We would fly back and forth to see each other every few months. Then he proposed December of 2004. In summer of 2005 Donnie got out of the active duty and into the South Carolina Army National Guard full time and I transferred to the SC Army Guard as well and moved down south to be with my future hubby.We married in June, 2006. I went into the inactive reserve in 2007, was officially out of guard in 2008. Donnie and I moved to Minnesota in 2008 to be closer to my family. We picked MN because I was able to transfer my job here and Donnie was able to move to the same role in the MN guard. In Dec of 2010 we had our first little baby Jaxon. Currently, Donnie is deployed to Iraq. His deployment will end in November.

Hobbies, Interests, Dislikes, etc:

Donnie likes car and truck stuff. He is addicted to Jeeps and anything to do with them- with us once owning 4 at the same time. A 1989 Jeep Wrangler, 1989 Jeep Cherokee, 1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee and a 2008 Jeep Compass. We still have the Wrangler and the Compass. He is also a UFC fan, I am one by default.


I like to quilt- I just started a little over a year ago, and have completed one quilt and halfway through my second one. We both love movies, plays and musicals. Well, Donnie loves movies and he likes the plays and musicals for me.

Why did you join the military? How did you decide on which military branch to join?

I joined the Army to pay for college. It was before 9/11 and guard soldiers didn't deploy unless it was during a flood or something to help fill sandbags. So I thought that would be something fun to do, could learn a lot of cool stuff, be in 20 years and have a nice little extra retirement. I did not want to be active duty so I was looking at the Army Reserves or the Army Guard. One of my friends that was a couple years older had joined the guard & he said that was better, so I just took his word, went to visit his recruiter and signed up. While talking to the recruiter, he told me that you have an 8 year obligation, where the first six you have to drill once a month and two weeks during the year and the last two you can do inactive. All that was true. He also told me that the unit I would be getting into alternated their annual training duty from Germany and Hawaii, SO if I were only to be drilling that first 6 years, I would have at least gone to Hawaii and Germany 3 times each. That was completely untrue and that's what sold me. He was a good recruiter- so good that when my sister rode with me to see him once he talked her into joining too. She was just graduating college and had a lot of student loans that the Army would pay off, so we both joined together (much to our parent's dismay). He was right that I got to travel, but not to Hawaii. And I have been to Germany but only in the airport on my way to Afghanistan.

What is your fondest military memory/experience?

I have many fond memories from being in the military but my first one was when I was in basic training. There was an obstacle course that we went through several times. The last time we went through, it was pretty much under water as it had been raining a lot in the days prior. When we had to low crawl, we were basically swimming on our bellies because there was so much mud and water. It's the most dirty I have been in my life. When we got to the end, there was a wall that you had to jump over and usually low crawl to the finish line. But this day there was so much water that it was about a couple feet deep. It looked like a rectangle water pit mixed with wood chips and mud. There was no way to low crawl in it as you would be under water. So instead everyone just jumped right in and waded/swam to the finish line. The best part was that our drill sergeants didn't usually participate in the course and their uniforms were always so clean and perfectly starched & pressed. But that day after everyone went through the water and we were all so dirty and soaking wet, all the drill sergeants climbed up on the wall and jumped right into the mud water, ruining their uniforms and swam to the end. We were all so motivated and excited and marched back home singing and not caring one bit how disgusting we were. When we got back they wouldn't even let us go into our barracks in our state and we all had to stand outside and get hosed off before going inside. Probably one of the most fun times I had in the Army.

What did you learn while you were serving?

A millions things. Too many to name them all. I learned that you can go a million places in your life but there is definitely no better place on Earth to be than home. I learned about comradery and the importance of friendship and being a part of a team. I learned the meaning of hurry up and wait and when to shout "back blast area all clear!". I learned how much we take our freedom for granted, and that not everyone in the Middle East hates us. I learned how easily I can cry- every time I hear the Star Spangled Banner with my hand over my heart, every time I see a going away ceremony or a coming home ceremony, every time a helicopter crashes, every time I hear the 23rd Psalm. I learned how I joined to pay for college but ended up being in for an entirely different reason. I also learned how to shoot a bunch of different types of weapons and that I am pretty good with a rifle. And that I am not so good at throwing grenades. I learned how to tell apart different types of aircraft just by the sound they make. I learned when to lead and when to follow and when to speak and when to listen. I learned how to be the best person I can be.

How did your military experience prepare you for the future/impact your life?

When we went overseas one of my best girlfriends had to leave her toddler son behind. I watched how hard that was for both of them to be apart and knew then that I never wanted to experience that, and be a mom and have to leave my child. That was a huge impact and then when I married Donnie I knew for sure that we both couldn't be in because I knew he wasn't ever getting out and no way was I going to have our future child have to worry about two deployed parents. That definitely changed from 18 year old Lisa, when I said I was going to be in for 20 years. I liked being a soldier but I knew I would like being a mom more. And I do.


As far as my experience preparing me for the future, just living by the Army Values helps me succeed at civilian life. Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, Personal Courage.

Any words of wisdom you want to share?

You don't have to be sorry for deployed soldiers or their families. They do it because that is who they are and what they are. Of course they are sad they have to leave their families but this isn't just a job for most of them. They absolutely feel it's their duty to serve. And who can feel sorry for that? Just be good supporters, look out for their families and send lots of care packages. :)