wanted to give back and thank America for all the great opportunities
and most importantly my education,” she says.
From 1991 through 2006, Herrera’s military tour included: HQ
Battery 11th Marines, 1st Marine Div., as Supply Admin Clerk; HQ
Battalion, 3rd Marine Div., Okinawa, Japan as G-4 Operations Chief;
HQ Battalion, Marine Corps Communication Electronics School,
29th Palms, CA as NCOIC Garrison Property and Supply Chief and HQ
Battalion, MCAGCC/MAGTFTC, as Sergeants Course Instructor. After
military service, she joined the ranks as a civil service employee.
She is currently assigned as Civilian Payroll Work-Lead at G-8
Comptroller, MCAGCC/ MAGTFTC, 29th Palms.
Chief Legalman Alicia R. Cooper
United States Navy
A native of Brooklyn, NY and raised
in Orlando, FL, Chief Alicia Cooper
enlisted in the Navy in August, 2000.
After basic training at Recruit Training
Command, Great Lakes, IL, she reported
to USS ARCTIC (AOE-8) in Earle,
NJ. In May 2002, she was accepted
Legalman “A” school.
Her fleet assignment included Naval
Support Activity, Diego Garcia; USS
THEODORE ROOSEVELT (CVN
71); Joint Task Force 134, Camp Bucca,
Iraq, Naval Legal Service Office North
and Office of Military Commissions,
Washington, D.C.; Commander, Naval Forces Europe/Africa, SIXTH
Fleet, Naples, Italy. She is currently serving at JAG Command
Master Chief and Inspector General’s Office.
Today, her family gives her the strength to move forward as she
was raised by strong Puerto Rican women. “I watched my mother
raise three young adolescent kids after my father suddenly passed
away,” she shares. “As a mom of four kids, Carlos, Carin, Camila,
and Carmen, but specifically to my daughters, I want to raise strong,
smart, proud, and independent young women, who will become
productive members of society. The best way I can do that is to lead
by example - they are watching. They are who keep me motivated.”
Petty Officer First Class Linda M. Galaviz
United States Navy
“I joined the Navy to accelerate my
life,” shares Petty Officer First Class
Linda M. Galaviz. “Just as the 2009
Navy slogan stated.”
In August 2009, she enlisted in the
U.S. Navy. After Basic Training, she
reported to Aviation Electronic Technician
“A” School in Pensacola, FL. Her first
assignment was Electronic Attack
Squadron (VAQ-134) at NAS Whidbey
Island, WA and deployed twice to the
Western Pacific aboard the USS
CARL VINSON (CVN 70) and one
Mediterranean cruise aboard the USS
GEORGE H.W. BUSH (CVN 77) in support of Operation ENDURING
FREEDOM and Operation IRAQI FREEDOM. She was advance
to Petty Officer First Class at Southwest Regional Maintenance
Center (SWRMC).
“The opportunities for advancement, not just in rank but in all aspects
of life and my career, have been overwhelming and I can truly thank
the Navy for that,” she shares. “Also, the people I’ve met in the Navy
have been another great part of my job. The bond you make in the
military with other members is something I’ve never experienced before
joining the Navy and one that is truly unbreakable.”
Alma Rubalcava (Civ)
United States Navy
Alma Rubalcava, a native of Ventura
County, serves as the team leader for
Littoral Combat Ships Mission Module
Peculiar Support Equipment in the
Surface Warfare Engineering Branch
of the Littoral & Strike Warfare Dept., at
Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port
Hueneme. Her career began at NSWC
PHD in October 2014 as a Mechanical
Engineer.
“Working for the government has
great benefits,” she shares. “Working
for the Navy gives the satisfaction of
contributing to the nation’s safety.”
She is one of nine siblings and her parents are immigrants from
Mexico. Her father, a farmworker, and mother, a stay-at-home mom,
were supportive of her career choice.
LATINAStyle Vol. 23, No. 6, 2017 www.latinastyle.com 29