Veteran’s Perspective 54 www.latinastyle.com LATINAStyle Vol. 25, No. 4, 2019
From Boots to Business
Owning Your Transition
By Catherine González Pack, Assistant Vice President, Video Operations
AT&T Mobility & Entertainment|Content Operations, U.S. Army Reserves Veteran
When my parents emigrated
from Uruguay to the United
States and found out they
were having a daughter, they were relieved
to think she would not have to sign up for
selective service one day. Imagine their
surprise when at 17 that same little girl
showed up with a recruiter because she needed
their signature to enlist in the U.S. Army.
As a 9-year veteran of the U.S. Army Reserves,
I did everything they promised me in that recruiting
video. I was challenged every day, pushed to do
things I never thought I could, learned leadership
skills I still use today, and traveled the world. The
one thing my service didn’t prepare me for was what
it would be like to take that uniform off permanently.
I spent quite a bit of my service years on active duty
deployments, and even when I wasn’t deployed
being a soldier had become part of my identity.
Taking those boots off for the last time felt like high
school graduation all over again – diving into that
great unknown. To be fair, I was already working in
a civilian job, so I didn’t have the active duty
transition most have searching for employment, but
it had its challenges nonetheless. No matter what
branch you serve, there is a sense of responsibility
to something greater than anything you’ve ever
known.
When that uniform comes off, there is a
reintegration period where you’re expected to learn
how to be like everyone else. What does that even
mean? I was 17 when I went in. I certainly couldn’t
be expected to now “adult” full-time, right? Yes, that
is exactly what was expected of me. Fortunately, I
think I figured it out. Here are a few things I learned
along the way.
We completed Confidence
Courses people!
For me it was Victory Tower at Fort Jackson,
SC. No matter what job you held, your service taught
you skillsets that apply to ANY career. From basic
organizational skills and problem solving to leading
large diverse teams – when you drill down into the
specifics of what your military role entailed, you will
find that you can do just about anything in the
civilian workforce.
Those of us who’ve served will
never be like everyone else and
THAT is what sets us apart
Have you ever noticed the immediate “smack
talk” that ensues when there is another service
member around? The sense of comradery, loyalty,
and even a feeling of “they’ve got my back” is
almost instantaneous. Use this, find this, wherever
you can. Build your network. And most importantly,
be proud of your veteran status – you earned it.
Find your community
I got out in 2002 and spent several years
missing that connection. Over a year ago I was
elected onto the board of a non-profit called
Merging Vets and Players. Our mission is to match
up combat veterans and former professional
athletes together after the uniform comes off
to give them a new team to tackle the transition
together.
LS
Catherine González Pack is
Assistant Vice President, Video
Operations for AT&T. In this
role, she is responsible for the
teams that produce AT&T’s
sports channels and that
manage relationships with
sports networks and leagues.
She also oversees AT&T’s
Media Productions team and
Audience network master
control. Catherine oversees a
team of 72 employees who are
responsible for the scheduling
and execution of all sports,
occasional pay-per-view
events, mosaic channels,
unique live events and internal
broadcasts for IPTV, satellite
and non-linear delivered
platforms. Prior to DIRECTV,
Catherine served in the U.S.
Military for nine years as a
radio and television news
journalist. This role led to work
as a sports camera operator.
Catherine González Pack, Assistant Vice
President, Video Operations, AT&T.
Bosnia, 1997-1998, in support of Operation
Joint Guard.
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