00:00:01O'SULLIVAN: Today is April 20th, 2026. This is an interview with Michaela Watson, who served in the Army National Guard from March 2016 to June 2024. This interview is being conducted by Megan O'Sullivan for the Wisconsin Veterans Museum Oral History Program. There is no one else present at this time. Welcome, Michaela. Can you tell me a little bit about where you grew up?
00:00:23WATSON: I actually grew up in, born in La Crosse, and then I grew up in Holman, Wisconsin.
00:00:32O'SULLIVAN: Umm--What was it like growing up in Holman?
00:00:38WATSON: It wasn't too bad.
00:00:40O'SULLIVAN: It wasn't too bad?
00:00:41WATSON: Small, little town, so.
00:00:42O'SULLIVAN: What was the name of your father?
00:00:44WATSON: Michael.
00:00:45O'SULLIVAN: And what did he do?
00:00:46WATSON: He---- is a paramedic.
00:00:50O'SULLIVAN: Paramedic. And what about your mother?
00:00:52WATSON: Her name is Amy, she is, she works in daycare.
00:00:57O'SULLIVAN: Was your dad a paramedic your entire life or is that a newer thing?
00:01:03WATSON: I think he's been there for like 10-15 years before that. He was a volunteer firefighter..
00:01:08O'SULLIVAN: Okay,--What schools did you go to? Elementary school?
00:01:15WATSON: Elementary school I went to.
00:01:19O'SULLIVAN: Ask the tough questions here.
00:01:21WATSON: Oh my gosh, I'm completely blanking on it. Went to one in La Crosse for a year, and then we moved to Colorado. Could not tell you the name of that school because we only went there for less than a year. And then we came back and started in Holman.
00:01:40O'SULLIVAN: And, um, what are the names of the schools here? Or are they just like--.
00:01:44WATSON: Oh, State Road is the one.
00:01:45O'SULLIVAN: State Road in La Crosse?
00:01:47WATSON: Yep.
00:01:48O'SULLIVAN: And what about the schools here?
00:01:50WATSON: In Holman I went to Viking.
00:01:53O'SULLIVAN: And then, middle school?
00:01:54WATSON: Holman Middle School.
00:01:56O'SULLIVAN: And high school?
00:01:57WATSON: Holman High School.
00:02:01O'SULLIVAN: What was your childhood like? Was there anything about it that like really sticks out to you?
00:02:08WATSON: Filled with playing lots of sports.
00:02:10O'SULLIVAN: Playing lots of sports. What sports did you like to play?
00:02:13WATSON: Basketball, softball and volleyball.
00:02:15O'SULLIVAN: Did you have a favorite of the three?
00:02:16O'SULLIVAN: Softball.
00:02:17O'SULLIVAN: Softball? When you were growing up, did you have any relatives in the military?
00:02:24WATSON: My grandpa was in during Vietnam era. I think he was stationed during, or in, Germany at that time.
00:02:35O'SULLIVAN: Was that something that he talked about in your childhood that you're aware of, or something you found out when you were a little bit older?
00:02:42WATSON: I think when I was older, he talked about it, but not too much until he talked more about it once I enlisted.
00:02:53O'SULLIVAN: Right. Um, when, how old were you when you enlisted?
00:02:59WATSON: I was 20, almost 20.
00:03:00O'SULLIVAN: You were 20 and, um, you had started, done some college at that point, is that right?
00:03:05WATSON: Yes, yup.
00:03:06O'SULLIVAN: Um, what school did you go to?
00:03:08WATSON: Uh, Western Technical College.
00:03:09O'SULLIVAN: And were you like studying something specific or?
00:03:12WATSON: I was going for early childhood education.
00:03:14O'SULLIVAN: Uh-huh. And was that something like the early childhood when you once you started where you're like, oh, I feel like this is a good fit or were you not sure or?
00:03:23WATSON: It was a good fit, um, for a while.
00:03:25O'SULLIVAN: Um, when you were in those early days of college was your awareness of like the military on the front of your mind?
00:03:39WATSON: Not really at the time.
00:03:41O'SULLIVAN: Uh-huh. Um, can you tell me a little bit about your decision, your process into the decision making?
00:03:47WATSON: Um, I had some other friends who had enlisted and I just started talking to them and I was like, all right, this is, I think this is what I want to do.
00:03:57O'SULLIVAN: Uh-huh. Do you know what about it appealed to you?
00:04:01WATSON: Just a change of, honestly, scenery. I felt like I wasn't doing too much here, so I figured it was going to be some good. [inaudible].
00:04:11O'SULLIVAN: So how long between that first conversation did you like talk to a recruiter or take the next step?
00:04:20WATSON: I think it was, I started thinking about it in--It was either, it was a holiday, so Thanksgiving or Christmas, and then I enlisted in March.
00:04:33O'SULLIVAN: March of...remind me of the year?
00:04:35O'SULLIVAN: 2016.
00:04:36O'SULLIVAN: 2016. Asking the difficult questions here. We just went over it too. So, tell me a little bit about like, what was that like right before you enlisted? How did you tell your family?
00:04:55WATSON: I just told them that I'm thinking about it and they said it was about time.
00:04:59O'SULLIVAN: And it was about time, so they felt like it was inevitable for you.
00:05:02WATSON: Oh yeah, they thought I would have done it right out of high school.
00:05:06O'SULLIVAN: Oh, that's interesting, but it didn't really occur to you immediately.
00:05:09O'SULLIVAN: No.
00:05:11O'SULLIVAN: So, at what point, at what point in that like process did you talk to your grandfather? Did you wait until you were enlisted, or did you go to him for advice?
00:05:21WATSON: No, we were actually at their house when I was talking to one of my friends. I was like, I might do this and they're like, cool.
00:05:31O'SULLIVAN: And what's your grandfather's name?
00:05:32WATSON: Richard.
00:05:33O'SULLIVAN: Richard, and last name?
00:05:34WATSON: Spring.
00:05:35O'SULLIVAN: Spring. So tell me what happened next after you enlisted. What was the next step?
00:05:44WATSON: So once I enlisted, I didn't go to basic right away. There was a couple months before I went to basic but I did they had RSP so they just one week in a month you go and they kind of train you and give you a little bit of an experience of what it's going to be like once you get to basics. So I just continued out what school I had left for that semester and then working.
00:06:22O'SULLIVAN: So where was that in your, that was the second semester of your sophomore year?
00:06:33WATSON: Yeah, I think so.
00:06:35O'SULLIVAN: And did you kind of have an idea of like, where schooling would fall into the rest of this? Like you keep going to school or you transition for a little while and then go back or?
00:06:49WATSON: I never went back.
00:06:50O'SULLIVAN: You never went back. But at that time, were you sure--pretty sure you weren't gonna go back or?
00:06:55WATSON: No--wasn't quite sure what I was gonna do but I just ended up not going back and just continuing to work in that field. I just never got my degree.
00:07:09O'SULLIVAN: And did you feel like just open to whatever possibility that like the army was going to provide you or?
00:07:16WATSON: Yeah.
00:07:18O'SULLIVAN: Where did you go to basic?
00:07:19WATSON: Fort Leonard Wood.
00:07:22O'SULLIVAN: What was it like traveling there? How did you get there?
00:07:25WATSON: I took a plane there, it was nerve-racking just because I'd never been on a plane.
00:07:30O'SULLIVAN: That was your first time on a plane.
00:07:32WATSON: And that I was going by myself.
00:07:34O'SULLIVAN: What about when you went to Colorado? Did you just drive there or did you not remember?
00:07:37WATSON: Oh, we always drove.
00:07:38O'SULLIVAN: Yeah, always drove.
00:07:39WATSON: I prefer to drive everywhere.
00:07:40O'SULLIVAN: How many siblings do you have?
00:07:42WATSON: I have three other siblings.
00:07:44O'SULLIVAN: That explains it. That's why that's why you guys like to drive, I'm sure. It's the first time on a plane. What was it like? I'm, sure you didn't really remember very much about your time in Colorado so what was it? Like just being around people that weren't living in Wisconsin
00:08:03WATSON: It was definitely different. I mean, you have people from all over, so. Everyone has different life experiences that you kind of get to share and learn about, and [inaudible].
00:08:17O'SULLIVAN: And tell me the kind of like set up in Fort Leonard. What were you guys like segregated, segregated by sex or?
00:08:25WATSON: For sleeping, yes, they had the, I mean, we were all in the same building, but we had different floors, so all the females were in one floor in a giant bay. I think there was like 60 of us. And then the males had four or five floors that.
00:08:43O'SULLIVAN: But you did basic together and training together, but sleeping separately.
00:08:46WATSON: Correct.
00:08:47O'SULLIVAN: When you first went to basic, was there anyone that you connected with immediately, or?
00:08:55WATSON: I met a couple people on the plane there was one from Minnesota so that helped because we ended up I think I flew out of La Crosse and went to Minneapolis so that I met them there so then I at least met one or two people that ended up going through all basic with me so that
00:09:15O'SULLIVAN: And do you remember their name?
00:09:17WATSON: No, the last name's Hanson.
00:09:18O'SULLIVAN: Hanson, and probably not still in contact with them.
00:09:21WATSON: Every once in a while because I actually did see them later on down the road and military career during different trainings.
00:09:30O'SULLIVAN: Interesting, it's funny how that works sometimes.
00:09:32WATSON: Small world.
00:09:34O'SULLIVAN: What about being around people of, like, different ethnic backgrounds, religions, anything like that stand out to you?
00:09:42WATSON: Not really, I mean, some days everyone would branch out and do their own church, but it wasn't too noticeable. Everyone kind of just did their own thing.
00:09:56O'SULLIVAN: Got along, didn't really talk about it too much.
00:09:58WATSON: Yeah.
00:09:59O'SULLIVAN: Any other people during your basic training that stand out, like maybe in leadership?
00:10:08WATSON: There were some tough female drill sergeants, but, there were.
00:10:12O'SULLIVAN: Did you appreciate that?
00:10:14O'SULLIVAN: Oh, absolutely.
00:10:15O'SULLIVAN: Yeah. Any particular stories or strong memories from those strong, those tough drill sergeants?
00:10:27WATSON: No, they were just tougher, I think, on the females, just to get them to really understand what was, what we were going through and kind of prepare us for anything potential.
00:10:41O'SULLIVAN: What um, what surprised you about basic training? Is there anything that was maybe like harder than you expected or?
00:10:52WATSON: Not really, I kind of went into it mindset that it's going to be tough and I always expect the worst so that way when it's not that bad you're like, oh it wasn't that bad.
00:11:05O'SULLIVAN: How had your training as an athlete prepared you for the physical part of it? Did you feel pretty well-equipped?
00:11:12O'SULLIVAN: Yeah.
00:11:13O'SULLIVAN: Were you doing any athletics still when you were in college?
00:11:17WATSON: Yeah, I was playing volleyball.
00:11:20O'SULLIVAN: Um, so after basic wrap wraps up, you head back to Wisconsin or was there something else?
00:11:27WATSON: No, I went to Fort Lee.
00:11:31O'SULLIVAN: And what did you do there?
00:11:32WATSON: I did AIT there for wheeled vehicle mechanics.
00:11:38O'SULLIVAN: Um. Tell me what it was like when you found out your MOS or did you get to pick something?
00:11:50WATSON: Yeah I got to choose so I kind of knew what I was getting into and I chose that just because we had a neighbor growing up and he was probably in his 60s at the time, and he would always work on vehicles in his yard in between our houses. So we would sit at the window in our house and talk to him through the window. And then as we got a little older, then we went out there and he would show us some things that he was working on. So then when it came time to choose, I was like, that looks interesting, let's do that.
00:12:31O'SULLIVAN: Do you remember his name?
00:12:32WATSON: Harry.
00:12:33O'SULLIVAN: Harry. So that's nice that he was like interested in sharing his knowledge with you guys. [pause] Um, what was AIT like?
00:12:47WATSON: Definitely different than basic, but we would just go to class all day and then obviously PT in the morning and then we did class all-day. There was some that did it throughout the night. But-- [pause] It was a little different just because we only had a couple females in a room. But we all shared the same floor. Same as basic. It was separated, but it was just four people per room.
00:13:23O'SULLIVAN: What did you do in your evenings when you were there?
00:13:29WATSON: Usually just hung out with some of the other females. Met some other people from the Midwest, so I mainly.
00:13:42O'SULLIVAN: Try to stay connected with them.
00:13:43WATSON: Yes, stay connected with them.
00:13:45O'SULLIVAN: Anyone in particular stand out?
00:13:48WATSON: I don't really talk to any of them. Anybody from AIT too much anymore. Yeah, just kind of hop from room to room and talk to everyone and talk to family and.
00:14:05O'SULLIVAN: Um, so what state is Fort Lee in?
00:14:09WATSON: Virginia.
00:14:10O'SULLIVAN: Virginia. Where did you go next after that?
00:14:21WATSON: After that, I came back home.
00:14:22O'SULLIVAN: Back home, how did it feel when you first came back? Were you like, ah this feels great? Or were you like missing the difference of being somewhere else?
00:14:32WATSON: A little bit of both, just because you just spent however many weeks with a bunch of people and that's what you were used to, so coming home and you're like... This is kind of different because you're not just stuck in a room with this bunch of people. You can kind of go do what you want.
00:15:00O'SULLIVAN: So after you came back to Wisconsin, tell me what happened with your life next.
00:15:09WATSON: I just went back to work.
00:15:11O'SULLIVAN: So you had said you were in school, so what were you doing for work?
00:15:16WATSON: I worked on a daycare.
00:15:18O'SULLIVAN: You worked at daycare, so you were working on that daycare while you were in school or did that transition?
00:15:23WATSON: [inaudible]
00:15:27O'SULLIVAN: And you worked there full-time?
00:15:30O'SULLIVAN: Yes.
00:15:31O'SULLIVAN: I guess it's like a similar, there's a bit of chaos in both of the places in the training and in the daycare so maybe some comfort in that or you're probably wishing you could be a drill sergeant with them some days.
00:15:52WATSON: No, they--
00:15:54O'SULLIVAN: They're pretty, pretty good.
00:15:55WATSON: Yeah, they weren't terrible.
00:15:58O'SULLIVAN: Um, so you were drilling at that point.
00:16:03WATSON: Yep, out of, in Sparta.
00:16:05O'SULLIVAN: Mm-hmm. How far away was that from where you were?
00:16:09WATSON: 30 minutes.
00:16:11O'SULLIVAN: And, when you, when Joe came around were you like looking forward to going or just depended on the week?
00:16:17WATSON: Depended on the week at first, yeah, I was, and then... After like a year or so, I was like, great, I gotta go back. But then after a while, it wasn't so bad again.
00:16:32O'SULLIVAN: And what was the name of your unit at that point?
00:16:35WATSON: Uh 107, Support Maintenance Company.
00:16:39O'SULLIVAN: And was there anyone like that you connected with there any standout people?
00:16:45WATSON: Yeah, I talk to quite a few of them still every day.
00:16:49O'SULLIVAN: Anyone in like the leadership that really stood out to you? Or made a big impact on you?
00:17:01WATSON: Yeah, there's quite a few, I guess, more later on before I transitioned out of the 107th and went to a different unit, but our... One of our lieutenants actually ended up going from the 107th and took command of the unit that I had transferred to, so.
00:17:27O'SULLIVAN: Just by happenstance or was that like a planned thing?
00:17:31WATSON: No, I actually went there first and then she.
00:17:35O'SULLIVAN: So it just happened that way. So. You're drilling, you're working in the daycare, and then what happens?
00:17:52WATSON: Just worked for a while, and then eventually switched jobs. So I switched jobs again, and then eventually we went on deployment.
00:18:06O'SULLIVAN: When you were, when you were drilling, I don't know too much about it. Like what's a day of drill look like? What time do you get there? How long are you there?
00:18:14WATSON: Um, usually had to be there by like 7, 7.30. Depended on the month, what we did. Sometimes it was just at the armory doing all the fun classes. And then other times we would actually go to Fort McCoy and go to the shops there and work on the vehicles and do services on all of our vehicles.
00:18:39O'SULLIVAN: Did you have a preference? Did you prefer doing the hands-on stuff?
00:18:42O'SULLIVAN: Oh, absolutely.
00:18:47O'SULLIVAN: Something like mechanic or like working on the vehicles or something, did you ever feel like a sense of anyone feeling like a female might be inferior at doing something like that?
00:19:02WATSON: Yeah, I had one sergeant who just did not, I was the only female mechanic. So I had one Sergeant who was just totally against it. So that's why for a little bit I did not look forward to going. And then I was finally able to talk them into switching me and one of the other guys, so I wasn't under his leadership anymore. And then it made it more enjoyable.
00:19:28WATSON: Can you tell me a little bit, like, what that conversation was like when you asked to be switched?
00:19:33WATSON: Um, it took a really long time for them to do it, but he would just openly say things about me in front of everyone. And then finally, I was like, I can't do this anymore. Somebody needs to get me out of this platoon. And they're like, well, so-and-so wants to go there. I was, like perfect, switch us. And then, so they finally. Made the switch, but I think it took almost a year.
00:20:05O'SULLIVAN: What about the other guys, were they just silent or did they try to stick up for you or?
00:20:11WATSON: Yeah, they did their best to stick up, but there was -- everyone knew that there just wasn't any changing.
00:20:17O'SULLIVAN: Yeah, that's really difficult.
00:20:20WATSON: And all the other females too, they're like, that just how he is, he's like that with everyone.
00:20:29O'SULLIVAN: So what was like the signifier for that platoon that you were in?
00:20:37WATSON: So that one was actually so that would have been more of a wrecker crew, so working with the military's version of a tow truck. So I was supposed to go to school for that. And then I was, I had had shoulder surgery, so then I couldn't go to that school. So then I just kind of sitting in there but couldn't do the job because I didn't go to the school. So I finally just switched out of the wrecker group back into just a regular maintenance section.
00:21:21O'SULLIVAN: Okay. So, tell me a little bit about your surgery, did you have an injury?
00:21:28WATSON: Yeah, I mean, we don't know when it happened, but I made it through basic AIT, at least with it, and then once I got to my unit. I had torn the labrum in the right shoulder at that point. So then I had to have that one fixed.
00:21:47O'SULLIVAN: I'm sure that was really uncomfortable. So after you got moved to the general crew, you felt a little bit more comfortable. You were also more aligned with your training to be able to get more done. So can you tell me a little about what a day of working on something might look like?
00:22:13WATSON: We'd just go to the shops early in the morning and work till probably four, five o'clock in the evening, afternoon. And we would do services. So we would oil change, filters--Work on, take the tires off, do all of that.
00:22:39O'SULLIVAN: Was there a list of what needed to be done or was it how they were parked in the building or they brought them in and out.
00:22:44WATSON: We brought them in and out as we finished them. So depending on what service you were doing, A or B, depended on what you were doing to that vehicle because they're slightly different. One's more detailed than the other, so it took longer. But we would have. Just small groups working on it. And then as we'd finish one, it would go get inspected and then we'd pull another one in. So it would be Humvees, LMTVs, just any wheeled vehicle that we had in the unit.
00:23:20O'SULLIVAN: Um, did you always work in the same groups or did it switch?
00:23:24WATSON: We switched. They would put a sergeant with us who would. Had been there a little longer and then you'd kind of have somebody more experienced, somebody brand new, and then a couple people kind of in between those. So that way you could each teach each other.
00:23:44O'SULLIVAN: You could balance the team?
00:23:45WATSON: Yeah.
00:23:47O'SULLIVAN: Was there something that you learned in that time period that stands out to you or a little tip or trick that someone told you that you still use?
00:24:00WATSON: Not that I can think of, I mean--[inaudible.]
00:24:07O'SULLIVAN: Are you handy as a mechanic on your own vehicles or anything like that?
00:24:14WATSON: I can do enough to get by. You know, it's different because those are all diesel. I do not drive a diesel. So I can, if I had to do my own oil change, I could do that.
00:24:25O'SULLIVAN: But you don't. You don't, you just have someone.
00:24:27O'SULLIVAN: No, my husband does it for me now.
00:24:29O'SULLIVAN: That sounds perfect. Why do the work when you don't have to? So, what, do you happen to know what year you got moved between the two platoons?
00:24:43WATSON: Was probably around 2018. 18 or 19.
00:24:52O'SULLIVAN: And are you still doing childcare at this point?
00:24:56O'SULLIVAN: No. I work as a pharmacy tech now.
00:24:59O'SULLIVAN: Oh right, but now, but like in 2018 you were still doing child care?
00:25:03WATSON: Yes. I think I had three jobs at that point.
00:25:07O'SULLIVAN: You're like, I did whatever I needed to.
00:25:09WATSON: Yes.
00:25:10O'SULLIVAN: Um, so what point did you meet your spouse?
00:25:20WATSON: 2021.
00:25:22O'SULLIVAN: 2021, so he's not yet in the story.
00:25:24WATSON: Nope.
00:25:25O'SULLIVAN: Got it, okay so tell me what happens next after you get switched over, you're doing what you need to do, you're working, you're living your life, anything else happening, standing out?
00:25:42WATSON: Not really.
00:25:43O'SULLIVAN: Did you ever think about like switching into the active army or changing anything about your enlistment?
00:25:55WATSON: No, not at that. I never thought about going active. I liked the National Guard.
00:26:01O'SULLIVAN: It had like a rhythm that worked for you.
00:26:03WATSON: Yeah.
00:26:05O'SULLIVAN: So does that take us to around 2020, 2021 or is something happened before then?
00:26:13WATSON: No, that would take us about 2021 when we start getting ready for the deployment. So 2020 to early 2021, we were just, we knew we were going on deployment. So we were gearing up for that.
00:26:34O'SULLIVAN: How did you feel when you first found out you were being deployed?
00:26:38WATSON: I was excited.
00:26:39O'SULLIVAN: You were excited. So I assume because you had never been on a plane, you had ever done international travel before. Were you excited by that aspect of it or just excited for the change?
00:26:53WATSON: Excited for the change and just the experiences. I mean, wasn't a fan of sitting on a plane for that long.
00:27:01O'SULLIVAN: Right.
00:27:02WATSON: But, yeah, I was excited for the experience.
00:27:09O'SULLIVAN: So what was the prep that was involved for that deployment?
00:27:13WATSON: We had to pack up the whole armory. We had to take everything with us. So for months, we went through everything, inventoried everything, packed it all up, and then had to move all of our vehicles that we had from the armory to Fort McCoy and get those all ready to be taken overseas.
00:27:39O'SULLIVAN: What did you pack into, or how did you packed it?
00:27:42WATSON: We packed everything into Connexes for the most part and then the trucks all went on. I think it was trains to. That's somewhere, I don't know where.
00:27:59O'SULLIVAN: You didn't hang out with the vehicles. They went on train to somewhere, a port somewhere, most likely. And then. Everything was packed up, the armory's empty, and it's time for you to go. Where did you go?
00:28:18WATSON: We want to Poland.
00:28:20O'SULLIVAN: What was your mission or why were you there?
00:28:28WATSON: Um. Just, presence, I guess.
00:28:35O'SULLIVAN: Just to be present.
00:28:36WATSON: Yeah, I mean.
00:28:38O'SULLIVAN: What was, uh, was there anything in particular going on in the world that made your presence needed?
00:28:43WATSON: Not when we got there, but towards the end.
00:28:47O'SULLIVAN: That shifted a little bit. So you left Wisconsin to go to Europe. Tell me about where you flew and how you got there.
00:29:02WATSON: So first we went to Fort Hood, did a couple weeks there of the primal. So that's just, we did some extra classes and... Things like that, and then we went to. Poland. I think we had two layovers, couldn't tell you where those ones were. And then once we got to Poland, we kind of separated. There was...
00:29:36O'SULLIVAN: Did you fly in-- How did you, like, in military planes or?
00:29:39WATSON: Oh, no. It was just--
00:29:41O'SULLIVAN: Commercial.
00:29:42WATSON: Yeah, contracted flight.
00:29:46O'SULLIVAN: How many, um, how many people were in your unit?
00:29:50WATSON: I think we brought 150-ish with us.
00:29:57O'SULLIVAN: And then you got there in 2021, one month.
00:30:04WATSON: July? End of June beginning of July. I know we were in Poland for 4th of July
00:30:15O'SULLIVAN: What was your first reaction to being in Poland?
00:30:22WATSON: It looks a lot like the Midwest.
00:30:24O'SULLIVAN: You're like, I know this place. Am I somewhere new?
00:30:27WATSON: Except for the buildings. It really did look a lot like the Midwest. It was just a lot of fields. So I was like, all right, this is it.
00:30:34O'SULLIVAN: Was that, like, disappointing?
00:30:37WATSON: No, just also not what, I didn't know what to expect, so I was like, oh, this is weird.
00:30:44O'SULLIVAN: Um, so everything is packed up. You start unpacking it or what's the, what happens next?
00:30:49WATSON: So, because it was still kind of height of COVID, we went to a small little base, middle of nowhere. And we were there for two weeks for their quarantine.
00:31:08O'SULLIVAN: Do you know what base that was?
00:31:10WATSON: Trzebien. Couldn't spell it for you though. [pause]. And, there was nothing--
00:31:19O'SULLIVAN: Before you went there to quarantine, because were there any procedures, were you guys masking if you were working on the vehicles or anything like that?
00:31:31WATSON: Um. We had to wear a mask. And then in Texas, before we left, we had to, I think we did like nine COVID tests. It was just...
00:31:44O'SULLIVAN: Make sure you're completely cleared, and then did you do some isolation? Was that part of why you guys were there or not necessarily.
00:31:52WATSON: Yep, yeah, we did just two weeks there and it was there was nothing on that base. It was just tense. So we did absolutely nothing there.
00:32:05O'SULLIVAN: Um, so you went to your quarantine and that was, um, uneventful or...
00:32:16WATSON: Yeah, it was very uneventful. There was... Had nothing there, they had. The tent for Chow. There was another tent that had like games and stuff, so we could go there and then it was just our tents. So we didn't do too much. We walked around. There was... Pretty open and there was roads and trails so we would walk those and that's what we did for two weeks.
00:32:52O'SULLIVAN: At this point had you like built any friendships or connections with people you were deployed with?
00:33:00WATSON: Yeah, because I had been with them, since 2017.
00:33:02O'SULLIVAN: Any people in particular stand out or that you want to name?
00:33:10WATSON: Yeah, I mean, there's still quite a few that I talk to every day. I think I talked to Brisk every day, Gruber. They were all sergeants, but they were in different sections. So those ones I still talk to every day. There's a couple guys that I still talked to. Brady I talked to every day, he had got to the unit right after I did, so. Just been together for that whole time and we were all pretty much always in the same little section so that was nice.
00:33:58O'SULLIVAN: Um, did you play any of the games when you were in that quarantine?
00:34:03WATSON: Not too much. They had like. I think they had switches, and ping pong, and like a lot of cards.
00:34:12O'SULLIVAN: I just imagine everyone playing cards, that's all I can think of.
00:34:14WATSON: We played the euchre quite a bit, yeah.
00:34:19O'SULLIVAN: So after the two weeks, then what happens?
00:34:21WATSON: Then we went to the bases that we were going to. So some of us ended up in Plovice and Poland, some ended up in Romania and then Lithuania.
00:34:36O'SULLIVAN: But you were in Poland?
00:34:37WATSON: I stayed in Poland the whole time.
00:34:43O'SULLIVAN: Was being overseas I guess it would have to be since you were only drilling so you weren't it wasn't like a full-time commitment but it was like what was that transition like to go from this part-time thing to like always there.
00:35:00WATSON: It was different, you know, I mean we had done annual trainings before. Their whole two weeks during the summer is a lie. I don't think I ever did a two week annual training. They were always like three to four. So really the longest I had been away from home was a month. So definitely different just because went from just doing that a weekend, a month, or maybe a month in a row. To 10 months of it. So it was a little bit of an adjustment, but it wasn't too bad.
00:35:46O'SULLIVAN: And since you were in that new platoon, you didn't have any more issues with any like sexism or anything like that.
00:35:56WATSON: Not at that point, no.
00:35:59O'SULLIVAN: Um, I think you had mentioned before we started that you started getting into pharmacy tech before you were deployed?
00:36:10WATSON: Yes, so I would have started that September of 2020. So I had just finished all the training and only had been in the pharmacy for five months or so.
00:36:25O'SULLIVAN: And where did you do your training?
00:36:28WATSON: At Gunderson here in LaCrosse.And how did you decide that that was like kind of something you wanted to transition into?
00:36:39WATSON: I just knew I wanted to eventually switch into something in the medical field, so I was just scrolling their site and they do an in-house training program, so then I just applied for that. Got into that so did that and it was like all right well I really like this so
00:37:02O'SULLIVAN: That's great. I'm glad it was the right fit. It is nice when it's like in house like that and you don't have to worry about if your learning is actually going to be applicable later. So was that. How did you feel about kind of leaving this new career you were starting, were you unsure at all about that?
00:37:27WATSON: Not really, just because it was still kind of new. They'll train me when I come back, you know? So it wasn't too bad. They gave me a hard time, because I had re-enlisted to go on deployment, so they were like, you shouldn't re-enlist. And I was like, I'm going to.
00:37:52O'SULLIVAN: Um, what was the thinking like, why did you reenlist? Why did you, was that ever a question for you or you kind of knew you wanted to?
00:38:04WATSON: It was kind of up in the air just because. Well, until I found out about the deployment, I was like, all right, I'll re-enlist.
00:38:14O'SULLIVAN: So that was more like an incentive for you to have that different experience.
00:38:18WATSON: Yeah, because I had two goals when I enlisted and they were to make sergeant and the deployment side of it was, you never know whether you're going to get that or not. So that was the second one, obviously not, it wasn't a priority, but it was just two things to-
00:38:42O'SULLIVAN: Work towards.
00:38:43WATSON: Work towards, yep.
00:38:44O'SULLIVAN: So at the end of your first enlistment before you re-enlisted what was your rank?
00:38:51WATSON: So when I--when we got to Poland, I was a specialist. By the end of Poland, I was corporal, and then as soon as we got back, I made sergeant.
00:39:03O'SULLIVAN: So you met that goal as well.
00:39:05WATSON: Yeah.
00:39:05O'SULLIVAN: Congratulations. How did it feel when it happened? Were you like, finally?
00:39:12WATSON: Yeah, because I had sat at a specialist for quite a while, because I went in as a PFC, so I think I was specialist by 2017, beginning of 2018, so I had been a specialist, for quite awhile.
00:39:44O'SULLIVAN: Um, so, uh, the job was like, why did you do this to us? Now you're going away. Just jokingly though.
00:39:53WATSON: Yeah, they weren't too... They didn't really care too much. I think it was different for them because I was the only one that they'd ever dealt with in the military. So my manager's like, I don't know what to do. She's like. Well, I guess we'll figure it out together.
00:40:20O'SULLIVAN: I mean, it would be maybe nice to know if she had answers, but it's also nice that she's like, yeah, I'm still willing to work with you. We'll figure it out.
00:40:27WATSON: Yeah.
00:40:30O'SULLIVAN: So you're in Poland, the unit breaks up into the three countries, and what does your day to day look like at that point?
00:40:44WATSON: Just we'd get up in the morning and we had a shop on the base. So pretty much went there. We worked on. Everyone's vehicles, all the other units as well, they would bring their stuff in to be serviced or repaired. But I guess when we first got there, there was a group of us who went to the air base or the airfield that was there because there was units leaving and then we had to receive all of our equipment. So there was just a small group of, there was like eight to 12 of us who would go there every day. And the units leaving, we had to wash every single one of their vehicles and then get them all lined up to be shipped back home. And then we received our equipment. Got it to the base, and that was, I don't know, it was like a ten minute drive away. So that was interesting because they had contractors there, but they were local contractors. So then we actually got to interact with some of, like the Polish civilians and some their military personnel because the airfield was their base. So that was interesting and sometimes a challenge.
00:42:29O'SULLIVAN: What was challenging about it?
00:42:30WATSON: They didn't know any English, and we didn't know any Polish.
00:42:33O'SULLIVAN: Uh huh. So was there a lot of like, pointing and...
00:42:37WATSON: I use Google Translate a lot and I have downloaded the Polish dictionary so that when I would talk to-- I got tasked to talk to some of the truck drivers who were coming in. Just tell them what where they needed to go. So we would just--I would just use my phone and tell them, like, hey, this is what we need. And then they could respond and it would translate it back. So you could have a whole conversation. Very helpful.
00:43:15O'SULLIVAN: Yeah, very helpful. Technology is interesting in that way. Especially just how views of it are currently changing to see you using it so effectively. Was that your idea to use your phone or did someone else say, just use Google Translate?
00:43:41WATSON: I don't remember. I just knew, like, they had recommended we download it. We quickly realized that pointing or just like trying to point that hey do you have a badge or a pass wasn't working so I was like you know what let's just pull out Google Translate. They told us this might come in handy. We had all downloaded it before. A lot easier.
00:44:08O'SULLIVAN: And then did you finally just like know the phrase for do you have a badge? And then you can just start with that or?
00:44:17WATSON: Their languages. It can be complex. I mean, I learned. Hello, thank you. Good morning.
00:44:28O'SULLIVAN: Your basic pleasantries.
00:44:29WATSON: Yes.
00:44:32O'SULLIVAN: Um, so you said that you had to like wash all of those outgoing vehicles. Was that something surprising or are you kind of knew that that might be happening?
00:44:48WATSON: No, it was kind of surprising. I mean, we didn't really know what was going to happen once we got there. So just once we got there they're like hey this is what we need to do because it had to clear customs so you couldn't bring any so they wanted all the dirt. I think their main concern was slugs being transported back. So that was. A little surprising just because we had no idea what we were going to be doing.
00:45:29O'SULLIVAN: Was that part of something that you did for the vehicles for your own unit as well or only like internal maintenance?
00:45:36WATSON: We ended up doing it on the back end so when we were leaving we ended up doing our own which was helpful because being that we did it when we got there we knew what customs was looking for what they wanted done so then that group of us was able to as we were packing up get all the vehicles cleaned out pretty much ahead of time because some of the bigger vehicles with all tools, all of that had to come out and be washed. So we were able to prepare that and make it easier on everyone on the way back.
00:46:15O'SULLIVAN: Um, so you're. Dealing with these vehicles that are outgoing, you're receiving your stuff, so that's still pretty early on. When you get there, then what happens after that?
00:46:30WATSON: Then we just work on vehicles.
00:46:33O'SULLIVAN: So you set up your space, you start working on the vehicles, and then you mentioned that maybe earlier on, later on in your time there, things started shifting. Can you tell me about that?
00:46:47WATSON: Yeah, so one probably a month or two before we were set to leave is when Russia invaded Ukraine. So they had started preparing some of the bases to just get extra people. We actually ended up, I don't think we ended up getting any just because we were further away from it. And then they had pulled at that time, we had everyone back from Romania, Lithuania, so we had the whole unit there again. So in terms of work, nothing really changed. It just delayed us leaving a little bit because we didn't know what was going to happen.
00:47:29O'SULLIVAN: What about the energy? Did the energy change? Did your feelings or concern at all, were you concerned at all about?
00:47:38WATSON: Not really. I think part of it was that we knew we were headed out and they had a lot of new units incoming because units were leaving. So it didn't really change too much for us.
00:48:03O'SULLIVAN: So you're a little bit delayed, you said, in leaving, and then you did leave, and how did that feel?
00:48:16WATSON: It was good. I mean, we were headed home.
00:48:20O'SULLIVAN: Yeah. I'm sure, like, that's the longest you've ever been away from a place you call home.
00:48:30WATSON: Absolutely.
00:48:32O'SULLIVAN: Was there a point when you started getting?
00:48:38WATSON: Yes, I mean, around the holidays, but it helps, it helped that so we had set aside Sundays. So my husband was also with, we weren't married at the time, we had only been. For like six, eight months when we left. So he was there. So then that helped. But then each Sunday we would set a time with our families and we would video call. So that helped just so then, you know, we each had like a time where we set aside.
00:49:23O'SULLIVAN: Connect. What's your husband's name?
00:49:26WATSON: Soren.
00:49:27O'SULLIVAN: And did you meet through drilling?
00:49:34WATSON: Yup.
00:49:35O'SULLIVAN: Um, can you tell me a little bit about how you went from meeting to dating?
00:49:42WATSON: Yeah, he was newer to the unit. Right before deployment like he had just gotten out of basic. So we met there, kind of started talking and hanging out and then, we eventually started dating and then after Poland then we got engaged and married.
00:50:11O'SULLIVAN: Did the engagement feel like an inevitable next step or did it come with a lot of discussion?
00:50:18WATSON: With discussion. I mean, I knew he wanted to.
00:50:23O'SULLIVAN: Did you want to?
00:50:24WATSON: Yeah. Yes.
00:50:26O'SULLIVAN: He didn't have to talk you into it.
00:50:28WATSON: No, no. So yeah, we had talked a lot about it when we were in Poland. But, and then, after too, because we didn't get engaged right after we got home. Kind of knew and we technically weren't supposed to be dating you know they don't really like that right but our whole unit knew leadership knew they didn't care right so that was helpful.
00:51:00O'SULLIVAN: Was there a point when maybe your relationship transitioned from friendship to more where you were like worried about being found out or having to talk to someone about it?
00:51:16WATSON: Yeah, I mean we knew that it had kind of gone past just being friends, but I made it very clear with him that drill and home life are completely separate. So when we were at drill, we weren't in the same section, he's got a different job. So we would keep everything separate. So people knew that we were dating, but I wouldn't really talk to him while we were at drill.
00:51:43O'SULLIVAN: Right.
00:51:44WATSON: Just because I wanted to keep everything separate, I didn't want home life to interfere with that.
00:51:52O'SULLIVAN: So then when you went to Poland, that was probably a little bit harder to keep things totally separate. So was that like only on Sundays you guys were connecting with each other as well or other times?
00:52:05WATSON: There was other times just because we had some free range after so we would do a standard like 9 to 5. Schedule, and then after that we could go off base. There was a couple restaurants like right outside the gate, so we could go, but...
00:52:29O'SULLIVAN: What type of restaurants were they?
00:52:31WATSON: It's like a burger place. Things like that. It was definitely geared towards... Americans.
00:52:38O'SULLIVAN: Right. You weren't getting your standard Polish fare there or anything? No. No, I wish I would have had more of that close by, but... Did you get to do any traveling in the country at all?
00:52:53WATSON: Yes they did. We did quite a few MWR trips so. I went to Germany. Um, we went to Auschwitz twice. We spent New Year's in Prague, and there were some other ones. People went on. I didn't go to all of them just because I wanted to save money.
00:53:27O'SULLIVAN: So you mentioned before we started the interview that you're really interested in World War II. When did that interest start for you?
00:53:39WATSON: I think it picked up more after going to Auschwitz.
00:53:41O'SULLIVAN: Oh, so it was-
00:53:42WATSON: But like I'd always been interested in-
00:53:45O'SULLIVAN: So that was a little bit of an inciting moment for you. When you found out you maybe had the opportunity to visit there, were you like really ready to go or did you think about it a little bit or? Oh no, I was ready to do it.
00:54:03WATSON: But obviously, you're excited to go, but not at the same time. Exactly. It's kind of one of those weird feelings. And you're like, OK, I really want to go see this, see what really happened. But then you're, like, oh, this is what really happens. Yeah. I'm kind of interested in mixed feelings.
00:54:30O'SULLIVAN: But you were intrigued enough, you went back a second time, and was that your highlight of your travel in Europe, or were there other things?
00:54:42WATSON: Yeah, those, I mean those two in Prague was really cool. Germany wasn't, I wasn't a fan of Berlin.
00:54:51O'SULLIVAN: Did you connect with any World War II things when you were in Prague?
00:55:01WATSON: Not really, I just like the history, architecture, the churches there, things like that.
00:55:11O'SULLIVAN: Um... So then, anything else you wanna share about this time period before you guys come back?
00:55:22WATSON: I should say, I forgot to mention, you asked if there was anything exciting that happened while we were in Trzebien. I definitely tore my left shoulder like right off the bat. Oh no.
00:55:34O'SULLIVAN: Oh no. So your injury was on the, the first injury was on the
00:55:40WATSON: It was like a weekend.
00:55:42O'SULLIVAN: But then your previous one where you had your surgery, was it the same side or the opposite side? Opposite side. Oh no, oh no. And how did you tear your shoulder?
00:55:53WATSON: We were doing playing volleyball for PT and all I did was raise my arm above my head and I tore the labor on that one.
00:56:00O'SULLIVAN: Oh my gosh. Did you know right away what it was?
00:56:02WATSON: Yeah, but they didn't believe me. None of them, like, I spent the whole rest of the deployment fighting them on it. They're like, it's not torn. But it is. So they finally gave me an MRI. But they didn't use contrast, so it didn't show that it was torn until we got home.
00:56:22O'SULLIVAN: Wow, you must have been suffering.
00:56:24WATSON: It wasn't a fun time.
00:56:28O'SULLIVAN: Um, you had said, maybe this is connected with this, that like, and maybe it wasn't on your deployment either, like things maybe shifted with seeing some like, um, gender discrimination or something, did that happen in Poland or was that later?
00:56:47WATSON: Um... Gender discrimination, not so much in Poland. That was basically with just one sergeant. There was some, I guess, sexual assault, like harassment type issues that happened on deployment.
00:57:12O'SULLIVAN: To you or around you.
00:57:15WATSON: Both?
00:57:16O'SULLIVAN: Both.
00:57:18WATSON: So then there was, that was like right at the beginning of when we got there is pretty much over half the females ended up having to make a statement against the one person and then they separated them at and finally sent them to one of the other locations that didn't have any females there.
00:57:43O'SULLIVAN: Did you, how did you feel about that as a resolution?
00:57:48WATSON: I mean, oh, I wasn't a fan of that. I mean. They're still in, so not a big fan of that. That really nothing happened, even though there was quite a few things that he was found guilty of, and the fact that he's basically at the same places where he left off.
00:58:16O'SULLIVAN: Without very significant consequences, how many women would you say had to make statements?
00:58:24WATSON: I think there was at least 12.
00:58:26O'SULLIVAN: At least 12, yeah? What was that process like, what made you decide to make a statement? Did you know like right away you would do it as soon as you get something happened?
00:58:42WATSON: No, I didn't say anything for quite a while. It was when we were actually in Texas, so we hadn't even left for Poland yet. And some of the things, there was some things that happened with that male and some of the females. And then. Like they were talking about it and then they finally went forward with it and then a bunch of the females are like, oh yeah, they did this, and this, and this and we were all kind of, nobody said anything until one person finally did. And then we're like, okay.
00:59:24O'SULLIVAN: Then you're just kind of comparing notes and being like, oh.
00:59:28WATSON: Yes, but then because some people had made the claims and then other people had seen some messages or just noticed some different behavior, then they were also asked to kind of share what they know. So then that's how it kind of ended up with more females. Of them who were truly involved. But yeah, that was an interesting process.
01:00:08O'SULLIVAN: So you didn't talk about what happened. The story started coming out and some people started making statements. And then did someone ask you to? Come forward, or you just felt
01:00:27WATSON: Yeah, just because a couple people knew kind of the situation, so they're like, all right, are you willing to? And I thought about it for a while. I don't know. I talked to Soren about it quite a bit too, and he's like, just do it.
01:00:49O'SULLIVAN: Well, what do you think--What is your biggest reservation about making a statement, do you think?
01:00:55WATSON: Backlash, even though it's all private, you know, confidential.
01:01:04O'SULLIVAN: Sometimes that has air quotes around it the confidential.
01:01:06WATSON: Yep .
01:01:08O'SULLIVAN: So before I assume you told Soren whatever happened at some point, but like was it quickly right away or around the time when you started thinking about making the statement.
01:01:24WATSON: I think a little bit of both. I had told him about it, and then went more in depth and talked to him about. While we were in Poland, just because that I had to make. It was basically just written statements that we had to do. So. He at least gave me that support, which was nice.
01:02:03O'SULLIVAN: Um, so you said you're even to this day, frustrated with the outcome of that. Do you feel, I guess good still that you did go through that process and make the statement. I mean, a little bit was improved as a result.
01:02:26WATSON: Yeah, I'm glad we all did it. Just, I think everyone's still not happy that--he is still, I think he's even higher rank now than what he was. I think was knocked back a rank and probably had no pay, but I think everyone was more mad that he was still allowed to re-enlist and still. I just saw him last weekend, and he's still in, so I think that's more annoying to me.
01:03:05O'SULLIVAN: So when you saw him last weekend, what was your first, like when you glimpsed him for the first time, how did you feel?
01:03:16WATSON: It might have been some swear words. No, it was more of like, how is this still being allowed?
01:03:27O'SULLIVAN: But yeah, I have been kind of a little bit hard to. Be faced with that again, even though it's not actively happening to you, so I really appreciate you sharing that with me. So the statements were made, he went somewhere else, but then he was still in your unit, right? He just was in a different section of the unit or he was in different unit now.
01:03:59WATSON: He was still in the unit, I think, once we got back. Then he was switched out to a different unit.
01:04:06O'SULLIVAN: Okay, that makes sense.
01:04:07WATSON: But it's [inaudible] back in that unit.
01:04:09O'SULLIVAN: So you got back to from Poland, you went back to Wisconsin.
01:04:14WATSON: Yep.
01:04:15O'SULLIVAN: And went back to drilling? Or was there stuff happening here?
01:04:22WATSON: Um, yeah, I went back to drilling. I actually had gotten promoted to sergeant, so went to a different unit.
01:04:35O'SULLIVAN: Oh, is that when you went to the?
01:04:37WATSON: Yeah, golf 132.
01:04:41O'SULLIVAN: And the promotion caused the unit change is that
01:04:47WATSON: Yeah, yeah. I had finally gotten my five, so I was given the option of either going to Waupaca to a golf company or going to Madison. It was kind of a [inaudible], same drive, but I knew people in golf who had joined us for the deployment to Poland. So I was like, all right, cool, I can drive halfway across the state, stay with them, and just, so, I chose there.
01:05:19O'SULLIVAN: Was that like a long deliberation or kind of like you remembered that they were there and you're like probably going to pick that way?
01:05:27WATSON: It wasn't really too long of a deliberation because it was either going there or going to an aviation unit, which would have been cool. But I knew my shoulder was torn. Yeah. And I had already had surgery. I'd already had the first surgery to repair it. So I was like, oh, I'm not really going to be able to do much there. So I'll just go to the 32nd and recover, be able do things there a little easier than. Going to an aviation unit.
01:06:08O'SULLIVAN: So can you tell me a little bit about like what the promotion process is like? You said earlier you were a specialist for a long time. Is that like you you apply somehow or?
01:06:20WATSON: So. At that time, you were supposed to go to a leadership course, BLC, basic leadership course. And then once you did that, you were suppose to be eligible for a sergeant. But because of COVID, all the schools got backlogged. So they just started, they just called it COVID promoting. So they, just because they had all these sergeant slots open, but nobody was able to go schools. They just started giving people the sergeant slot. And then once you got one of those sergeant slots, then you had two years to go to the school. I never went to the school. Just because I couldn't. I tried. And then... I think by that point I had had the second surgery on the left shoulder. So I was like, and I had already, by that point, once I had the second one, they had already started the med board process on me. So I just like, there's really no point in.
01:07:37O'SULLIVAN: Join the schooling for no reason, essentially.
01:07:40WATSON: Yeah, because I won't be able to do half of it and then. So I think I ended up holding that slot for a little over two years, and the unit's like, we're not doing paperwork to revert you back. We're like, you're getting out. So once I had the third surgery on the shoulder, and then they're like all right, you are done.
01:08:08O'SULLIVAN: So, even though it was a COVID promotion or however you referred to it, were you still like excited about it or felt like you achieved your goal?
01:08:22WATSON: Yeah, I was definitely still excited about it, just because at that point, I figured I'd go to the school. At that point, I wasn't thinking, yeah, I'm gonna get them unboarded out. Yeah, yeah. Because I had just re-enlisted. So I had re- enlisted right before pulling for four years. So I still, by the time I got to the 32nd, I still had. Three, three and a half years.
01:08:56O'SULLIVAN: What year was that that you went to--2022?
01:09:02WATSON: Yes.
01:09:08O'SULLIVAN: Um, how did your, um... Day, like when you were drilling, how did your day to day change when you, after you're promoted?
01:09:25WATSON: I just, well, it's hard because, so when I first got promoted, I had taken a wheeled vehicle mechanics spot there. So I had a couple soldiers below me, so it was still the same, day to day.
01:09:47O'SULLIVAN: It was pretty similar, you were just a little bit more of the one being like, pick up that, you do this first, something like that.
01:09:54WATSON: Yeah, it was just a little more like, hey, this is instead of waiting for somebody to tell us, hey, that's what we're doing today. It was just me telling them, hey this is what we've got going on today. And that was only like that for a couple months before they just pulled me out of that slot because. I had had the second surgery by that point, so I knew that, they knew that it wasn't going to be able to do that job. So then I, and we had some other people coming into the unit, so they had just kind of separated the soldiers below me into other people and then I got moved to supply where I could still have that sergeant role, but actually be able to do. Something and not just sit there for months while I recovered so I can at least be productive. So what did supply do? We inventoried, you know, we'd hand out the supplies. So if we were going to Fort McCoy, then we would hand out all the weapons, gas masks, all that kind of stuff. It's a little different when it came to annual training, just because I still wasn't able to do much. I still went. But I just ran the radios. Which was cool because I didn't know anything about the radios before, so I was able to use that, take that opportunity to learn some different things that I probably wouldn't have if I just stayed in the maintenance section.
01:11:56O'SULLIVAN: Um, so you had your annual and then you did what? Two, at least two annuals with them. Did you do three as a sergeant?
01:12:07WATSON: I did 2. Yeah, 2.
01:12:13O'SULLIVAN: Um in that like later part of your your time where there any like new people that you met or like people you connected with or anything like that
01:12:26WATSON: Yeah, I mean, we actually ended up getting quite a few who were in Poland with us, ended up transferring to that unit because they were gearing up for that unit that was gearing up for deployment. So then they were starting to get people from other units. So then I got to reconnect with some of them. And then. I've met a couple others, one of them I still talk to quite a bit.
01:13:01O'SULLIVAN: And what was their name?
01:13:02WATSON: [inaudible]
01:13:06O'SULLIVAN: So is there anything else about this time period, any stories you want to share?
01:13:15WATSON: Not that I can think of.
01:13:16O'SULLIVAN: And then your kind of time in the army came to an end because of your, your enlistment was ending, but also because of you shoulder.
01:13:28WATSON: It was mainly the shoulder. I still had two years on my contract when I got out, so. I had to go through the whole med board process and then.
01:13:39O'SULLIVAN: What was that like? It's like a year process. You had mentioned already you were kind of anticipating that that might be happening.
01:13:51WATSON: Yeah, after the second one. The first one they were okay with, but then once the shoulder froze and they had to go back in, they were kind of like, all right, are we going to start the med board process? And then... They were, I think they had started it by that point, or after that, but by the time that I had the third one and they caught the bicep tendon, I knew that I wasn't, they weren't gonna let me stay in. So I'd kind of accepted that. So I knew that was going to happen until then I was able to use that time that I was still in to train. Like the soldiers under me, like I was able to teach them everything that I had learned with the radios. So I actually only did one annual training with them because I got out while they were at the second one.
01:15:03O'SULLIVAN: When the men board happened after the, sort of happening after the second surgery, was there any emotions connected with that? Like you said, you kind of ready in a way, but was there anything else?
01:15:17WATSON: I mean, it was tough, just because. I figured I would get out on my own terms and not them saying, hey, you're done. So that was a little bit of a struggle, just because I had figured I'd finish out that contract and then decide what I.
01:15:41O'SULLIVAN: And then you'd have another choice to make. What about your husband? What year did you guys get married? 23. And is he still in the military?
01:15:54WATSON: Yes, he just recently re-enlisted.
01:16:00O'SULLIVAN: Was that a conversation you guys had or it kind of felt inevitable?
01:16:04WATSON: It was a conversation we had.
01:16:08O'SULLIVAN: Was it one sided?
01:16:09WATSON: Well, so he told me that he was thinking about it, but then never said when or how long he was going to until one day he came home and I was like, what's that in your car? And he's like, oh, it's a new Woobie. I was, like, how long did you reenlist for? It's like you told me you were going to, but he never said. I think he decided that day. Like as he was signing that, hey this is, I'm just gonna do three years. I didn't care that he re-enlisted. I knew he was going to. So I was like, one of us has to get the retirement, might as well just stay. Because he's going to school, so he re- enlisted for the schooling benefits, so I knew it was going to happen.
01:16:58O'SULLIVAN: What is he studying?
01:17:00WATSON: Paralegal.
01:17:02O'SULLIVAN: And tell me, I don't know this, so you can be the one who teaches me, just like you taught them all about the radios. What are the options when you re-enlist, like there's year, terms, or how does it work?
01:17:15WATSON: Yeah, so when I did it... I chose four years. Just because I had a re-enlistment bonus with it. I wasn't quite set on six years, so I was like, I'll do four. I think he ended up doing three years. So you can even re-enlist for, I think you can do a year.
01:17:42O'SULLIVAN: You can do like a year at a time if you wanted to.
01:17:44WATSON: I think when we were in Poland, some of them actually did for like 17 days. It was just enough to get them through the deployment, through everything after, and then they got out. So you can do it and most people do it like three, four, two, three, four, six years. Just because you kind of have to play with it a little bit. Because there is always that potential, if you just do, continuously do six years, you hit 18, and they're like, oh, we don't really need you anymore. So then you don't hit that 20. So a lot of people end up doing, like they'll start out with six, and then they'll do. Like a four and then they'll do another six. But they do odd years just to make it so they end up getting over that 20 years.
01:18:47O'SULLIVAN: Right, makes sense. Did you use any benefits in any of your schooling or anything? I don't know how it worked with that.
01:19:02WATSON: No, because I had enlisted while I was in the middle of a semester. So I didn't get to use any of that. And then. I think I Well, so I could still use some of them if I wanted to But I don't think, because how everything happened, I could have transferred the, I think it was the post-9-11, so what we got for going on deployment. I think I could've transferred those to my husband, but it had to be done two years before you get out, since I was med-boarded. And I didn't have that two years. I don't think I can transfer them anymore. It is what it is. I can maybe eventually go back to school and use it.
01:19:57O'SULLIVAN: Yeah, um, on your last day in the military, how did you feel?
01:20:11WATSON: It's kind of bittersweet, but also, we didn't necessarily know it was my last drill, because we knew it was going to be soon, but we didn't know, like we hadn't gotten the information of, hey, this is going to your last day. So. We had a good idea that it was my last, so it was kind of bittersweet. And then they gave me the date and that unit was, my unit was at annual training, so I was not there. Just because they knew what was going to be soon, but also they don't want to risk injuring anything anymore.
01:21:01O'SULLIVAN: Any more injury.
01:21:03WATSON: So. It was kind of just another day when that day actually hit.
01:21:10O'SULLIVAN: Did you do anything to mark it or?
01:21:17WATSON: Not really.
01:21:17O'SULLIVAN: No? Just time passed, and then you were a civilian.
01:21:21WATSON: Yup.
01:21:23O'SULLIVAN: Was there any adjusting period after that?
01:21:29WATSON: Not really. It is still weird to me when my husband goes to drill. This is weird, normally we had it the same weekend, so I'm like, this is weird just sitting at home knowing that you're doing things, and it's been two years, and I still think it's a little weird.
01:22:00O'SULLIVAN: And so you're doing your, you're still working in Pharmacy Tech Now.
01:22:09WATSON: Yep.
01:22:10O'SULLIVAN: And that's like, is that like just a standard weekday nine to five job or?
01:22:16WATSON: I wish.
01:22:16O'SULLIVAN: Oh, okay.
01:22:19WATSON: No, we're open 7 a.m. To 10 p.m., seven days a week. So my schedule fluctuates every day. Some, like today. I'm not done till 10:15. It's kind of all over the place, which...
01:22:37O'SULLIVAN: Is that something you like or dislike? Just depends on...
01:22:40WATSON: I'd prefer the later shifts but I mean really the whole change and the longer days isn't too much different than some of the training days we had in the military so it's like it's not
01:22:56O'SULLIVAN: It just feels familiar for you.
01:22:58WATSON: Yeah, so it's not I think it's easier for me than some of the other people that I work with just because I'm used to some of those longer days
01:23:07O'SULLIVAN: Since you left, have you joined any veterans organizations?
01:23:20WATSON: So I was already a part of the American Legion here on the cross. Pretty much it. I don't even live near this one anymore, but it's the one that my grandpa is a part of, so I go to that one because he's still there.
01:23:47O'SULLIVAN: And so you, you're active, you do stuff. Is there anything in particular you like about type of events that they do or things you like to experience?
01:24:01WATSON: I don't actually do too much there just because it's like 40, 45 minutes from my house now. So you know they'll do dinners and stuff on certain holidays and I'll go join my grandparents there. But other than that I don't really do too with them. Eventually I'll switch probably to one closer to my house, but...
01:24:32O'SULLIVAN: No reason to now, you've got family there.
01:24:35WATSON: Exactly, so I'm like I'm not gonna Leave that one, but other than that I don't really do too much, other than try to help all the veterans who come into the pharmacy, because they don't realize that they can use some of their benefits with us, so try to educate them on that.
01:25:01O'SULLIVAN: What's that process like? Is it... Is it sometimes hard, like you said, they don't know that already, and then is it hard for them to still navigate once you start informing them or just case by case?
01:25:17WATSON: I think it's case by case, so for the most part since we end up with the community care aspect of it. They're using and if they're going to urgent care. So they don't know that they can use their VA benefits there. Once they use it there then they can come to the pharmacy and get their prescription to not wait for the VA to send them to them. So once I kind of explain that to them and how the process works and they're like Really? I was like, yeah. Let me go get that taken care of for you. That's great. So, and some of them just don't understand at all. And they're like, what's it gonna take too long? And I was like, but it doesn't. So it is kind of nice to, since I use the VA, I kind of know what the process is, so then I can use that to help other people who don't. So that's kind of.
01:26:19O'SULLIVAN: Yeah have that little bit of inside information. What do you think, how do you think your life might have been different if you never joined the army?
01:26:33WATSON: I feel like I would have just been stuck doing. I would have just felt stuck. I think it helped me grow up a little bit, just gave me different life experiences that helped in just everyday situations. But it was also kind of nice because I got to go away and kind of be my own person. And I say that because I'm a twin.
01:27:15O'SULLIVAN: Oh, really?
01:27:17WATSON: And we had done everything together. So it kind of allowed both of us to branch out and be our own people instead of everyone always.
01:27:28O'SULLIVAN: Lumping you together.
01:27:29O'SULLIVAN: Yeah,
01:27:30O'SULLIVAN: And, um, is yours twin sibling sister?
01:27:35O'SULLIVAN: Yup.
01:27:35O'SULLIVAN: And what's her name?
01:27:36WATSON: Mackenzie.
01:27:37O'SULLIVAN: Mackenzie and Michaela. That's very cute. I'm sure you hear that all the time. You're like no, no, never again. Um. She never, any of your other siblings like join any military branches or anything?
01:27:52O'SULLIVAN: She never had any interest or something you talked to her about?
01:27:52WATSON: No.
01:27:56WATSON: Um, she debated it, but then she had a back surgery, so she's like, uh, probably shouldn't do that. And I was like, that's fair.
01:28:05O'SULLIVAN: Was she involved in athletics as well?
01:28:07WATSON: Oh yeah.
01:28:08O'SULLIVAN: Did you guys like the same sports or play different like prefer different ones?
01:28:11WATSON: Um, we played some of the same but preferred several ones, like she liked to run, I don't run.
01:28:18WATSON: Yeah.
01:28:21WATSON: Unless the military made me.
01:28:22O'SULLIVAN: Yeah. There's a little bit of that that goes around. What was it like being away from her when you were in Poland?
01:28:38WATSON: I don't think that one was too bad just because I had already went to basic AIT. So we had already had, you know, that initial separation that we hadn't had before. So I think going to basic was a little harder just because you didn't communicate at all for that. 13 weeks. So I think that was the harder part, but then once you got through that, you're like, okay. Too bad, because we could at least communicate. We had our phones with us so we could talk all day long, or throughout the day when we had a free chance. So that wasn't as bad. I do feel like it was probably harder on her than it was for me, just because I was surrounded by a bunch of people that I had known for years where it's like we were living together at the time and now it's just her in an apartment by herself. So I think that was, I think it was harder on her than it was for me.
01:29:53O'SULLIVAN: Yeah. Um. What point did you guys just the two of you moved out into an apartment together at some point or what? Did you have more roommates?
01:30:05WATSON: Um. When I enlisted, so from when I enlisted to after it was just me and her in the apartment before that we had other roommates.
01:30:18O'SULLIVAN: And. Did you guys, you got along well, like you like living together and all that kind of stuff? How, what does she think of your husband?
01:30:35WATSON: Now she likes him.
01:30:36O'SULLIVAN: Yeah, was that like, uh, excited when things started? Was she excited when thing started shifting for you guys?
01:30:46WATSON: Yeah, I think so. I mean, he fit in. Like, he got along with my siblings and brother-in-law and everything pretty well, so.
01:30:57O'SULLIVAN: That's great. So you said like you especially going to Poland being separated from your sister being like you said surrounded by all of those people kind of helped you connect with like a new sense of your individual self. Was there anything else about being in the the military that like really stands out to you?
01:31:32WATSON: Not that I can think of...
01:31:33O'SULLIVAN: What would you tell someone who was thinking about joining the Army today?
01:31:41WATSON: I would tell them to go for it. You know, it might not end up to be something that you want to do long term, but you learn a lot of valuable life lessons. I think it helps people grow.
01:32:06O'SULLIVAN: Um, how do you feel about Memorial Day? Do you do anything for it?
01:32:17WATSON: Not really.
01:32:19O'SULLIVAN: How about Veterans Day?
01:32:22WATSON: Um... I don't really do too much for Veterans Day. They do a little ceremony at work, so I usually try to go to that, but I'm usually working.
01:32:38O'SULLIVAN: Was there a point after? Your time ended when you started thinking of yourself as a veteran.
01:32:50WATSON: Not really.
01:32:51O'SULLIVAN: Do you think of yourself as a veteran now?
01:32:53WATSON: Not really.
01:32:54O'SULLIVAN: Yeah. Even though you're using your VA benefits and--
01:32:58WATSON: That actually took quite a while for me to do because I was like, no, I'm not going to like I don't think I
01:33:07O'SULLIVAN: Yeah, tell me a little bit more about that resistance.
01:33:11WATSON: I feel like every, maybe not every, but a lot of the younger. I guess veterans don't really think about it. They're like, oh, it's just for, you know, the older guys. I was like, I don't, really. Need to, but then... They had an event locally. That had like information about the VA so you could sign up for to get enrolled in the VA benefits and I think I was off for the third shoulder surgery at that time so I was like, well I've got nothing better to do right now so I guess, you know, might as well go look into it, see kind of what they offer. So I went to that and I was, of course, by far the youngest person. But it also kind of shocked me how. There was a lot of the, like, Vietnam guys who were just now kind of looking into getting their benefits. So that was interesting to me too, but... I honestly just kind of took it as a supplemental. Like, I go there once a year, but now that I'm signed up, like I can use it if I need it, but I still carry my own insurance. So, and I kind of use it right now more for certain components of it like yeah, I go and get an annual physical, but kind of gives me referrals for fertility. So that was also kind of the--
01:35:20O'SULLIVAN: A factor for you?
01:35:21WATSON: Yeah, otherwise I probably would have waited.
01:35:24O'SULLIVAN: So when did that start becoming front of mind for you?
01:35:31WATSON: Like taking the VA benefits.
01:35:33O'SULLIVAN: Whatever the fertility component of it was.
01:35:38WATSON: Um, I think I started looking into it after. Probably 2024. So kind of like a year after we had already been trying, and that's when they do all the testing and stuff. So I kind of looked into it, and by then I had enrolled for VA benefits. So then I was able to learn a little bit more of like what the VA can help with, what they can't help with. And then it's like, okay, they cover this, but not this.
01:36:15O'SULLIVAN: When you have a little bit more of like a... Insider understanding from your profession where you can understand some of the things that some of the pathways that maybe are invisible to other people. Yep. And how has that process or let that journey been, has anything changed with that or?
01:36:36WATSON: Nope, still using those benefits. No, we've been, you know, it's been like two and a half years now. VA does great with helping out with that, which is nice, I didn't. I wasn't sure what they did. Which is also good to know for other females. Just because you never know what they want to cover, what they wanna help with, just like, I guess that's with any insurance. But, you know, they're picking on things, but actually, VA's been great with it.
01:37:27O'SULLIVAN: Is there anything else that we haven't covered that you want to tell me about your life, your military experience?
01:37:39WATSON: Not that I can think of.
01:37:40O'SULLIVAN: Do you think anything might shift for you or your husband when he gets his 20 years in?
01:37:50WATSON: I don't know. It's definitely going to shift way before that because he goes on deployment in two months.
01:37:58O'SULLIVAN: Uh huh. So, is this the first time he'll be deployed without you? Yeah. How are you feeling about that?
01:38:06WATSON: Fine for now. I think once he leaves I'll be like, oh, what am I going to do? You're going to be a military wife. I know.
01:38:14O'SULLIVAN: You're going to be a military wife, and that's not really been who you were before.
01:38:16WATSON: Yeah, it was always we did things together. So it'll be interesting and I think the most challenging part will I Mean the distance yes, but I don't think that's gonna be the issue. It's more of For me figuring out like okay. This is what he used to do at home, now I gotta figure out, you know, figure out how to get everything done. You know, whereas we separate everything.
01:38:44O'SULLIVAN: Where is he going, do you know?
01:38:45WATSON: Middle East.
01:38:46O'SULLIVAN: Does that worry you at all?
01:38:51WATSON: A little, but, no, at the same time. I mean, just because with everything going on, a little more, yes. And he had the opportunity to kind of back out of it, just because we were doing the fertility things. And I was like, absolutely not. You're going. So because he had debated it, and I was, like, you want to go? I'm never going to deny you of that. Just go. Because you'll be mad at yourself if you don't go. Yeah. So.
01:39:23O'SULLIVAN: Well it's great that you're supportive and you understand that about him because I'm sure he really appreciates it.
01:39:31WATSON: Yeah, I think it helped being in the military first too, it's a little easier to understand where he's coming from.
01:39:40O'SULLIVAN: Well, that's all the questions I have for you. I want to thank you very much for your time today. And I also want to think you for your service. And that concludes our interview.
01:39:52WATSON: Thank you.
