Late For Changeover

My guest today is Air Force Chief Master Sergeant (Retired) Michelle “Taz” Zayatz.  Michelle grew up in Pittsfield, MA and graduated from Taconic High School.  In 1982 she joined the Air Force with an Air Force Specialty Code of 276 Aerospace Control and Warning System.  Her first assignment was to the 667th Air Control and Warning Squadron at Hofn Air Station, Iceland in 1982.  After completing that remote tour she was assigned to the 2nd Communications Squadron at Buckley Air National Guard base in Colorado.  During this assignment, she met and married her husband, Allen.  In 1986, Michelle separated from Active Duty and accompanied her husband as he finished his Active Duty career in the Air Force.  Throughout their subsequent PCS moves, she continued her career by joining the Air National Guard in MS, NY and CO.  In 1998, she transferred from the COANG to the Air Force Reserves and became a founding member of the 8th Space Warning Squadron at Buckley AFB.  In 2006, Michelle moved to the 310th Space Group at Schriever AFB.  In 2007, she requested to be reassigned to stand up the new 310th Mission Support Group in Denver.  Chief Zayatz retired in 2011.

Joining me today is Army Retired CW3 Jaime Hernandez. Jaime was born and raised in Ponce, Puerto Rico and graduated from Ponce High School in 1989.  He attended Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico pursuing a degree in Accounting.  He enlisted in the Army as an 11B and went to basic training at Fort Benning, GA in 2002.  His first assignment was to B Company, 2/35 Infantry at Schofield Barracks, HI, and deployed to Afghanistan in 2004.  In 2008, he reclassified to MOS 88N Transportation and went to Fort Eustis, VA for training.  After being promoted to E-7, he again deployed to Afghanistan in 2010.  During that deployment, Jaime applied and was accepted into the Warrant Officer program.  He graduated from the Warrant Officer course in 2013 and was next assigned to the 4th ID at Fort Carson, CO.  He was next assigned to Camp Casey, South Korea in 2016 followed by an assignment to Fort Hood, TX.   He completed a Bachelor’s degree in Transportation and Logistics management from American Military University in 2018, and then deployed to the Arabic peninsula in 2019.  Jaime was promoted to CW3 and was assigned to his final duty station back at Fort Eustis.  He retired in 2022.

Joining me today is Army MAJ (Ret) Ruslan Emelyanov. Ruslan was born and raised in the former Soviet Union.  When he turned 18, he was conscripted into the Soviet Army in 1989 and chose to be a Paratrooper.  Over the next couple years, he accepted an invitation to attend the newly formed Russian Military Academy.  He graduated in 1995 and was commissioned as a Lieutenant in the Russian Army.  He had also earned his Jumpmaster status at that time.  His first assignment was to join his new unit already fighting in the First Chechen War.  At the conclusion of the war, his unit redeployed in December 1996.  Ruslan was then reassigned to Moscow and transferred to the Military Police.  In 1998 as a Captain, he resigned his Commission and left the Russian Army. Family relatives who lived in California applied for a Green Card for Ruslan, and in 2000, he joined his relatives in Carmel, CA.  When the Sep 11th attacks occurred in 2001, he contacted an Army recruiter about the possibility of joining the U.S. Army.  The recruiter said he could enlist with a Green Card and signed him up as an 11B Infantry MOS.  At 28, he attended Basic Training at Ft. Benning, GA.  After graduating Basic, he attended Jump School and earned his U.S. Parachute Badge.  His first assignment was to B Co., 2/35th Infantry at Schofield Barracks, HI.  In 2003, he renounced his Russian citizenship and was sworn in as a U.S. citizen.  In April 2004, his unit deployed to Afghanistan for a year tour.  Upon returning, he was promoted to SGT.  He also earned Jumpmaster in the U.S. Army.  A few years later, he was recommended for OCS at Ft. Benning, and in 2007 he was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the Infantry.  In 2009, Ruslan changed branches to Civil Affairs and spent the next 12 years working with Special Operations Forces out of Ft. Bragg, NC.  He retired from the Army in 2023.

Joining me today is Air Force SMSgt (Ret) Juan Lopez.  Juan grew up in California both in Los Angeles and later Vacaville.  He attended Vacaville High School and graduated in 1999.  He joined the Air Force in 2000 and went to Basic Training in 2001.  His AFSC was 1C6 and he attended tech school at Vandenberg AFB, CA.  Juan’s first assignment was to 11 SWS (ALERT) at Schriever AFB, CO.  In 2002, he was reassigned to 2 SWS at Buckley AFB, CO.  After that tour, his next assignment was to work HEO with 460th Det 1 back at Schriever AFB in 2006.  Three years later, Juan was chosen to be an instructor with the 533rd Training Squadron back at Vandenberg AFB.  In 2013 he was assigned to 13 SWS at Clear AFB, AK for a one year remote tour.  He was then assigned back to Buckley with the 2 SWS to work the SBIRS Block 10 program.  In 2017, he was promoted to MSgt and then converted to the Reserves through Palace Front.  He was assigned to 4 SWS at Buckley as an Active Guard/Reservist.  Later, he was moved to the 710th Operations Group and was promoted to SMSgt in 2019.  Juan retired on 1 Nov 2021.

Today I have the pleasure of speaking with Army SFC (Ret) Krendra Harralson.  Krendra grew up in Tacoma, WA and attended Lincoln High School.  As a Sophomore, she joined the school’s JROTC program.  During her Junior year, she signed a contract with the WA National Guard at 17, and attended Army Basic Training at Ft. Jackson, SC during the summer before her Senior year in High School.  After graduating in 1998, she completed her AIT at Ft. Sam Houston, TX as a 92B Medic. Her first assignment was with the WA NG Aviation unit as a Traditional Guardsman until Aug 2000.  Then she enlisted in the Active Duty Army and was assigned to Wiesbaden, Germany with the 557th Ground Ambulance Company in 2003.  Her next assignment was to the 4th Engineer Battalion at Ft. Carson, CO.  In 2009 her unit was deployed to Taji, Iraq.  During that deployment, her unit was relocated to Kandahar, Afghanistan where she was battlefield promoted to SSG in 2010.  A year later, SSG Harralson was assigned to the 555th Engineer Brigade at Ft. lewis, WA.  Her last assignment was to Ft. Sam Houston, TX in 2016 and she retired in 2018. After retiring, Krendra competed in the Ms. Veteran America through the non-profit Final Salute Inc.  Later, she received the appointed title of Mrs. Texas 2024 and will be competing for Mrs. USA at Omaha, NE in Aug 2024.  To find out more about Krendra’s journey and how you can help, please visit the links below: Final Salute Inc.  https://www.finalsaluteinc.org/Home.html Love Without Boundaries. https://www.lovewithoutboundaries.com/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100093336497504 Instagram https://www.instagram.com/krendra_harralson/