From the newsroom to active duty: News4JAX reporter, Andrea Snody’s National Guard story

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – I’m back at News4JAX after three weeks on active duty with the National Guard in Pennsylvania — and it’s great to be home.

As a first lieutenant and 42B — also known as an Adjutant General officer — my role in the military focuses primarily on human resources. This three-week mission was a bit out of the ordinary compared to a typical National Guard schedule, which usually consists of one weekend a month and a two-week annual training each summer.

While I can’t discuss the details of the mission, my job was to in-process soldiers through a process known as receiving, staging and onward integration — or RSOI. My team and I conducted welcome briefs for soldiers arriving at our base.

I received my commission through the Penn State Army ROTC program and have been serving in the National Guard for four years now.

I love my job in the National Guard. I love getting to put the uniform on and having the chance to serve my country — in big ways and small. But most of all, I cherish the perspective military service gives me when telling the stories of veterans and military families here in Jacksonville.

I am so excited to be back, and I cannot wait to tell all of your stories.