Reservists share personal success stories at LULAC

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Amaani Lyle
  • 459th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs Office
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AFNS) --  She came from Lima, Peru, and earned her master's degree at age 27. He came from San Antonio and earned his master's degree at age 47.

Both are Air Force reservists. Both beat the odds in relentless pursuit of their dreams. And both attended the 2009 League of United Latin American Citizens convention and exposition here on a quest to inspire a new generation of local Latino students with personal stories of hope and inspiration. 

Tech. Sgt. Alyson Angeles-Kimbrell, an information manager on full-time orders with the 349th Air Mobility Wing from Travis Air Reserve Base, Calif., and Col. Abel Barrientes, the 4th Air Force vice commander, each credit the Air Force with bringing game-changing value to their lives. But they also agree that simply building on their own successes is not enough. To them, planting the seeds of success is as important as reaping their own rewards. 

Her story

In seven years, Sergeant Angeles-Kimbrell mastered English well enough to earn multiple degrees, became a U.S. citizen, joined the U.S. Air Force, then returned to her native country through an Air Force humanitarian mission to help sexually and physically abused children in an orphanage.

Although her father served in the Peruvian navy, Sergent Angeles-Kimbrell said she struggled growing up to undo the cultural restraints that prevented so many women from being encouraged to join the military. To further complicate matters, she tried in earnest to overcome the language and cultural barriers in the U.S. Since Sergeant Angeles-Kimbrell spoke no English when she arrived in San Francisco at age 11, she recalled a fairly rudderless existence by the time she graduated from high school.

"It took me a while to learn English," Sergeant Angeles-Kimbrell said. "When I graduated from high school, I didn't know what career to pursue, and college didn't work for me at first."

Knowing she wanted benefits, education and stability, Sergeant Angeles-Kimbrell initially considered the Army, before finally enlisting in the Air Force. After eight years of watching her parents complete the U.S. residency process for their family, she finally opted to become a U.S. citizen when she joined the Air Force in April 2002. She spent three years on active duty at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., where she earned her Community College of the Air Force degree. After that Sergeant Angeles-Kimbrell said she got the "education bug."

"I became a traditional reservist so I could continue pursuing my college education, and I just kept working harder and harder," she said.

She worked so hard, that in just one year she earned her bachelor's degree in political science, before completing her master's degree in health administration last year.

While many would consider using the Montgomery GI Bill to earn multiple degrees to be a significant feat, Sergeant Angeles-Kimbrell said the Air Force Reserve afforded her an unexpected and even more meaningful experience.

When the Air Force Reserve offered her the opportunity to go back to her native Lima to work in in the U. S. Embassy for four months, Sergeant Angeles-Kimbrell said she jumped at the chance, although she never realized that trying to relearn her native tongue would pose a significant challenge.

"It was tough working with the other branches because of cultural differences and language barriers," the NCO said. "Even though I spoke Spanish, I didn't use it much in the U.S. and it's easy to forget. "

Linguistically shifting gears proved relatively mild compared to the challenge of turning money into usable supplies and goods to help hundreds of children at three orphanages in Peru.

With the help of U.S. Southern Command in Miami, a 15-member friendship soccer team came to Peru with cash donations totaling $15,000 to buy items for the orphanages, and Sergeant Angeles-Kimbrell said she emphatically wanted to help.

"I was in charge of going to the stores, spending the money and trying to make things happen with washers, dryers, medical kits and even a swimming pool to be used for physical therapy for the children. We knew the money would really make a difference because of the exchange rate there," she said.

Despite the fact that the U.S. dollar is worth about three times as much as the Peruvian peso, the challenge at hand was getting local stores to dispense the goods and supplies as they waited to receive checks since regulations prohibit cash donations.

With supplies dispensed and yet another challenge overcome, Sergeant Angeles-Kimbrell began to survey the donated items in action. Some of the goods went to orphanages that housed severely abused children or those who suffered psychological disorders. 

El Hogar Ermelinda Carrera is one of several boarding schools for sexually abused young girls ages 5 to 18. While the school teaches the girls trades and crafts, Sergeant Angeles-Kimbrell's efforts to obtain and distribute the goods in Peru directly provided the orphanage residents with desperately needed educational and hygienic supplies.

Sergeant Angeles-Kimbrell said her Air Force experience in Peru will never be forgotten or regretted.

"I was actually glad that I came back to do something for my country after not being there for 14 years," she said. "Being in the Air Force Reserve made me appreciate what I have. Hopefully the children at the orphanages and schools there have the tools they need to at least have the opportunity to do what they want when they get out of that place."

Sergeant Angeles-Kimbrell said she hopes her experiences can be the impetus to change young peoples' lives both in her homeland and here in the U.S.

"Joining the Air Force was obviously the greatest thing I've ever done," she said. "If I can mentor someone with a similar background as mine, then maybe they can do something in their life too -- just because you're Latin or female doesn't mean that you're not able to achieve your goals."

His story

As a colonel in the Air Force Reserve, Colonel Barrientes said LULAC means primarily one thing to him.

"LULAC, to me, means youth outreach," the colonel said. "I personally would like to see Latino officer numbers up and share my experiences with young people who may not yet realize what opportunities they have."

A native of San Antonio, Colonel Barrientes said he was proud to be the first in his family to attend college. Since then, he has amassed more than 16,000 flying hours as a pilot with Delta Airlines and a C-5 Galaxy pilot at March Air Reserve Base, Calif. Not bad, he said, for a guy who had never been on a plane before going to the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo.

"I was 18 years old and had never even been out of Texas," Colonel Barrientes said. He described his parents as "lower-middle class, caring, concerned and very involved" in his life.

"I owe them a lot," he said.

The colonel continued that though his military career might suggest flying was always his calling as a younger man, he submited that it was not.

"I would say that the military was a calling for me as a teenager, but flying in particular was not; I just really wanted to be in the military."

His experience indicates anything but a generic military experience. He beamed as he spoke proudly of spending about as much time in the classrooms as the cockpit.

"Believe it or not, I just got my master's degree last year," the colonel said.

He explained that he used the Reserve Education Assistance Program to pay for his master of business administration.

His educational endeavors have only bolstered his message to young people he mentors around the world. The colonel said he typically gives three-part advice to young ears in his audiences:

"Learn another language; have a plan that you can follow -- if it needs to change, change it, and most importantly, never stop learning."

The colonel noted that sometimes people fall into self-inflicted lifestyles that may forever alter their social statuses.

"Some things in life will take you out of the main stream and you don't want to do that ever -- especially when you're young," Colonel Barrientes said. "You remove yourself from a lot of opportunities when you get into drugs, gangs and other crime."

The colonel avers that education is the antidote for any pitfalls people may face in their life choices.

"If you have an education, you can do anything in this country," he said. "I've been around the world three times and continue to learn each day."

It is often said that good teachers make good students. Colonel Barrientes said he was very moved to be able to teach Iraqi pilots to fly C-130 Hercules aircraft during his deployment in 2006.

"As one of 50 Americans helping 500 Iraqis learn to fly, I can honestly say helping another country start up their own air force was just awesome, and certainly one of the best experiences of my career," the colonel said. "I want to share my life experiences so young people can go be inspired to enjoy their own."

Editor's note: This is the second installment of a three-part series: Air Force makes a difference through LULAC.