Ode To Kevin

I wont write a poem or sing a song, but I wanted to draw attention to what an amazing man I'm married to. He wouldnt toot his own horn here, so i'll do it. He has already RL progressed, as of a few weeks ago,(no longer has to fly with an instructor as a copilot) so I decided this was a perfect time to focus ya'll into his hard work in all it took to accomplish this!

It all started in Dec 2007. I was at drill in Pocatello, and he was drilling in Boise that particular weekend. He sent a text that went something like this:

Him: Wouldn't it be cool to be a Blackhawk pilot?

Me: Yeah, that'd be sweet

Him: You'd let me?

Me: You'd have to have a degree, you know, be an officer?

Him: Nope, I could be a warrent officer [no degree needed] Would you let me do that?

Me: Of course, that'd be really neat. Why wouldn't I "let" you?

Two months later, we find ourselves with the townhouse rented, and relocating to the Boise area. We quit our jobs, quit school, and said goodbye to friends. We had no idea if it would even work out, but move we did. I wondered more often than once if we were crazy. Don't doubt my faith in Kevin's abilities, it was just pretty unsettling to have no idea if they would accept him or not! Like always, Kevin was quickly known for his super powers. People would see my name tape at drill and ask, "are you the one that scored so high on the aviation test?" Oh, nope, that would be my husband ;). In the mean time, he got his private airplane pilot license too.

Kevin's 1st airplane solo. may 2008

In June 2008, the phone rang with the good news. Be ready for December the man said. The chance we had taken payed out, and Kevin was clearly walking on air. Despite the high number of applicants who didn't make the cut, Kevin was placed high on the list that did. I would say he blew them away. He would dispute it, but he is just being modest. Well, we didn't make it to December. We got a call on a Friday late September informing us we would need to be leaving by the following Tuesday to make it in time for Kevin to start WOCS (warrent officer candidate school). Apparently, someone else who was going to go then, had to get some minor surgery, and Kevin was shoved into his place. We didn't mind.

Kevin Graduating WOC School Nov 2008

Schooling began 4 days after we drove through those Fort Rucker gates and lasted over a 20 month period. Enduring weeks away from home, starvation, mock pow camps, LOTS of dedication to studying, PT, a week long ferocious map- making project in our living room, a little bit of time to play, and of course, learning to be a quite above average pilot.

Kevin in the pilot seat as we watched from the tower on family day. June 2009

He officially graduated the Army Aviation School of Excellence UH-60 course (Blackhawk) April 29th, 2010. He is so smart that he was an honor grad, without spending as much time as most in the books, not a shock to anyone, but still I'm still proud, none-the-less. He worked so hard, and he deserves every ounce of reward. He is such a great husband, father, pilot, person. Chloe and I love him very much, and the sacrifices he makes for us. We are very blessed to have him in our lives.

Kevin's flight school graduation. (Look how much

Chloe has grown from his WOCS grad to here :))

He continues to impress the people in his unit. He always seems to know the answers to their questions, I believe its come to the point where some are doing their best to "stump" him. I think they'll have to keep trying - my hubby is such a smarty pants!