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Conversations With A Vet - AF Veteran Teanna Lambert · Military Broadcast Radio | MBR Talk

1:07
Well, good evening everybody and welcome to Conversations with a
1:10
Vet this Sunday. Hopefully everybody's had a
1:13
wonderful weekend. I would like to start off by
1:17
saying if you haven't already gone out to Amazon and picked up
1:22
your copy of Unshaken Resolve that's by Michael Alexander
1:27
Payne, you can do so now. It is a really great read, talks
1:32
a lot about leadership and you know, following the course and
1:40
additionally the author as well as previous guest has signed.
1:44
So there are two autographed books waiting for when we hit
1:50
the next milestone of 1000 subscribers.
1:53
So please, please, please make sure that you hit that
1:56
subscription button, hit the notification bell so that you
2:00
don't miss any new content and new interviews with veterans.
2:06
And also make sure that at the end of the show that you hit
2:09
that like button and put a comment.
2:11
We love to read those and make sure that everybody gets to see,
2:17
you know your thoughts. So thank you all for watching.
2:21
I do have a wonderful guest waiting.
2:24
Her name is Tiana Lambert and so please help me welcome her to
2:29
the stage. Hi.
2:31
Hi, good evening. How is your weekend doing?
2:35
It has been a great weekend. Lovely weekend actually.
2:39
So. That's a good thing.
2:41
Yeah. That's a wonder.
2:43
Yeah. It's been good.
2:45
The weather hasn't been too bad. Got the lawn mowed before it
2:48
started to storm. I felt like I accomplished
2:51
something just by doing all of that.
2:55
That's always the hard part, right?
2:56
Is, is timing of things? Yes, so.
3:01
Well, thank you so very much for agreeing to come on the channel
3:04
and telling your story. I'd like to usually ask my
3:08
guests when at the start to tell me a little bit about who you
3:13
were as a child. So who was Tiana as a child?
3:17
Wow, that's a good question. First of all, I just want to say
3:21
thank you so much for having me and thank you for facilitating a
3:26
podcast like this where veterans do have the opportunity to come
3:29
on and share their stories and who they were before, during and
3:32
after service. So it's sometimes multiple
3:35
different people in there. Exactly right.
3:39
It's that whole growth process. And yeah, so thank you.
3:43
Yeah. So I was, prior to military
3:48
service, I grew up in a small, very rural, very poor area of
3:54
northern New York, about two miles South of the Canadian
3:58
border, in the middle of nowhere.
4:01
So much so that when I was a little girl, before I went to
4:04
kindergarten, my mom had asked me who the president of the
4:09
United States was. And I did not know.
4:12
I knew who the Prime Minister of Canada was because we did not
4:16
get. Cable where I.
4:18
We had rabbit ears and that we only got Canadian television
4:25
stations. So that's that's what I watched.
4:28
And the ironic thing was my mom worked for the cable company and
4:33
so. You went to work the.
4:34
Next day and within a week we had cable because the guys at
4:39
work were like, no way is that little girl going to grow up and
4:41
not know that she's American. So, yeah, so I grew up just, you
4:49
know, the oldest of three kids had, you know, my parents ended
4:54
up divorced and remarried and all that, all that stuff.
4:58
And so, yeah, just that's that's who I was.
5:01
I was a good student. I was a cheerleader in high
5:04
school. I.
5:06
Went to like 4 different high schools.
5:08
So it was we moved around a lot and we were not a military
5:13
family, so. Yeah, that does make a
5:16
difference, doesn't it? It's hard.
5:19
How was it for you with, you know, making friends and and
5:24
moving all the time? Was that a difficult thing?
5:26
It was definitely difficult. It was, it was very difficult.
5:30
I mean, I went to four different high schools.
5:32
So I mean, high school is only four years long.
5:35
So I was, I was somewhere different quite frequently.
5:40
And it was definitely a challenge because you just, you
5:44
know, at that, at that stage of life, you're coming into people
5:48
already have their friend groups and things like that.
5:51
And you're trying to figure out who you who you are already in
5:55
that age demographic. And then you're trying to figure
5:58
out where you fit in. And do you fit in in this group
6:02
at the last school where you in you were in?
6:04
But are you fitting in with those people here or is that not
6:07
going to work out? And it just definitely was
6:10
challenging, but I had some great friends, you know, that I
6:14
ended up graduating high school with so.
6:16
Right, which is wonderful that you had that.
6:20
So all right, did you do any sports or probably no time when
6:24
you were a cheerleader, did you? That was my sport.
6:29
OK, I apologize profusely. Yes.
6:32
Outside of cheerleading, did you do any other sports?
6:35
Not in high school, no. OK.
6:37
No, I did not. What was it then that made you
6:42
decide that you wanted to join the military and specifically
6:47
the Air Force? So I actually didn't join the
6:50
Air Force straight out of high school.
6:53
I actually went to college for a year and just was probably not
6:59
making the best life decisions. And so I had taken a little
7:03
break from from school and I actually did the Miss New York
7:08
US USA pageant. And so the the person who won
7:14
that year was actually in the Navy at the same time as she was
7:18
competing in the Miss New York USA pageant.
7:20
And I was really actually very inspired by the talk that she
7:24
gave and the way she carried herself and just some different
7:28
things, you know, that that she had.
7:30
And I was like, OK, that that was really inspiring to me.
7:33
As a. Fellow contestant and I, I kind
7:38
of knew I didn't want to go back to school at that time and I
7:42
literally just woke up 1 morning and was like, I'm going to go
7:45
talk to a recruiter today. And if I don't do it now, I'm
7:48
never going to get out of this place.
7:50
That's really what happened, right?
7:53
So I joined the Air Force. My, my stepdad was in the Air
7:57
Force prior to him and my mom being married.
8:00
So I did, you know, hear his stories.
8:03
My grandpa was a World War 2 veteran.
8:05
And so I, I had heard stories and just had that sense of
8:10
pride. And I had also while I was in
8:14
college, was during 9/11 happened when I was in college.
8:18
And so just seeing that, I think there's, there's a lot of people
8:23
probably in my, in my age group that went one way or another,
8:27
right? We're like, OK, we're going to
8:28
stand up and we're going to, we're going to serve our country
8:31
and, and, and do that. And so that that's what I chose
8:35
to do. And, and I think that's such a
8:38
great thing. It's a lot of people don't
8:41
understand, especially nowadays, you know, the drive or the want
8:48
to join the military. And then you have the opposite
8:52
side of the spectrum, who I mean, you're all volunteers.
8:56
Every one of you at this stage are volunteers.
9:00
And so to me, that speaks volumes about the kind of person
9:07
that you are and to serve the country and be able to at a
9:16
moment's notice, you know, fight to defend our freedoms.
9:22
So thank you for that. Thank you.
9:27
How was it when you get to your base, your training, basic
9:36
training? What was it like when you first
9:40
get there? You first step foot?
9:42
What was going through your head?
9:45
What the heck have I done? That's absolutely what was going
9:50
through my mind. I was like, I I don't know that
9:53
I've made the best choice right now.
9:56
You know, you're getting yelled at to get off the bus, to hurry
9:59
up, get off the bus. Prior to even getting there.
10:03
I had never flown by myself before.
10:06
I had never ridden on a bus by myself before.
10:09
I had to take a bus from where I lived in rural New York to get
10:12
to an airport like 3 hours away. And so I had to do that first.
10:18
And then I get there and, you know, changing planes, all that
10:22
kind of stuff. And so I had never, ever done
10:24
any of that by myself before. And I had only ever been on a
10:28
plane one other time. So it's not like I had flown
10:31
regularly or anything like that. And you get there and you're
10:33
tired and you don't know what to expect.
10:35
And you what you should expect is just to get yelled at.
10:40
Well, and your nerves are already on high alert because I,
10:44
I remember what you were Speaking of as far as the first
10:49
time flying by yourself, even I mean for you this first time
10:53
ever, but first time flying by yourself, you, it's your
10:57
experience. It the same way you don't know
11:00
where anything is. You don't know where these gates
11:02
are. You don't know, you know, So
11:04
you're struggling to figure this all out because the worst thing
11:08
in the world is going to be to miss a flight, right?
11:11
Right, yes, for sure. So, yeah, it was definitely a a
11:17
challenge and getting there and, you know, hurrying up, getting
11:20
off the bus and, and all of that was interesting.
11:25
Yeah, at least. I I can only imagine.
11:29
Definitely memorable. That's not a bad thing 'cause
11:33
that's what we're all about here tonight.
11:35
Memories. Yes, yes.
11:39
So tell me about what it was like during a basic training.
11:44
Do you have any funny stories that you groom or call?
11:49
Actually, I've gone through a a few funny stories recently, but
11:52
the one that really stands out to me that I have had brought to
11:58
my mind for some different reasons was I was what they
12:01
called the study monitor. So it was my responsibility at
12:05
that time. We had these big black zipper
12:08
pouches that we had to March around with everywhere that
12:11
actually had like binders of papers that we had to memorize
12:16
the information of, right, Like so ranks and all, just
12:21
everything, everything we needed to know was in these.
12:24
And we, there, there is a written test.
12:26
And so, and they, they still have a test today and stuff like
12:30
that. Like it's not like I'm that
12:31
ancient, but, but they, I, I had to go up and down the, the ranks
12:38
and quiz my flight and my brother flight actually.
12:42
And just going up and down and asking people questions.
12:46
And I remember my TI yelling at me and like he wanted to make
12:51
sure we had the best score and it was going to be my fault if
12:54
we didn't. And just just having those, that
12:57
pressure sort of like, I can't, how am I supposed to make sure
13:01
that Johnny over here knows, you know, what rank a senior master
13:06
Sergeant is and how many stripes they're supposed?
13:08
To be right you. Know different things like that.
13:10
So that was just looking back. I'm like that was so dumb.
13:17
That was my job and that's not even a job that people have any
13:22
longer. So that's not a thing.
13:24
So it's it's. Which is a good thing, because
13:29
it's hard enough to stay, you know, take responsibility for
13:33
yourself, get alone, let alone. Yeah, but you're you are one
13:37
team, so you got to figure it out together also, but.
13:40
Exactly, Yeah. I would say the other funniest
13:43
thing that happened pretty early on when I was at basic training,
13:48
I have two other things. One was, I remember my TI
13:53
yelling at me, what did you do, wake up 1 morning and decide you
13:57
were going to join the United States Air Force?
13:59
And I was like Sir, yes Sir. Actually like that is what
14:04
happened. And here I am.
14:07
Oh, goodness gracious, that's. Funny, I did actually just wake
14:11
up 1 morning and decide I needed to get out of here and I'm going
14:15
to join the Air Force. And within a month I was gone.
14:19
So, so that is true. And then the other one was I
14:23
didn't know that it could get cold in Texas.
14:27
You know, Air Force basic training is in San Antonio, and
14:31
we had freezing rain. And it happened to be on a day
14:34
that I got to call home. And when when I went through
14:38
basic training, the 321st Training Squadron was called
14:41
Hotel Hell. It's no longer called that, but
14:45
it was Hotel hell. And I remember calling my mom
14:47
and I, I was crying and I was like, mom hell has officially
14:52
frozen over. Like, I am there and there's ice
14:56
everywhere. Yeah.
14:58
So it was, those were my, like, funny, funny moments.
15:02
Everything else was just get in, get stuff done, get through.
15:08
And honestly, I, I think it's probably a miracle.
15:13
I think a lot of people probably feel that way for, for different
15:16
reasons, you know, that, that they made it through the
15:20
training that they needed to get through.
15:22
So. Right, right.
15:24
I think too, before I forget, when you decided you wanted to
15:31
join the military, I'm assuming you had the conversation with
15:36
your mother. You did not.
15:39
I did not I when I say I woke up, I literally woke up.
15:44
I, I felt I can look back now and for me, I know that that was
15:50
absolutely the Lord was speaking to me to say, get up, go and get
15:55
out of here and this is what you're going to do and this is
15:58
how you're going to do it. In that moment, I probably
16:01
didn't feel that way. I was just like, I got to do
16:03
something. So I did not have a
16:05
conversation. I got up, I got dressed, I
16:07
walked down the stairs and I said, I'm going to go talk to a
16:10
recruiter today. And I walked out the door and
16:12
left. That was that was it.
16:15
There was no conversation before I went and talked to the
16:19
recruiter and I completely signed up.
16:21
I did all the paperwork, everything I needed to do.
16:23
I, I mean, I was, you know, an adult when I signed.
16:26
I didn't need anybody's permission.
16:28
So, right, So no, there was no conversation.
16:32
There was. None.
16:33
When did so? When your mom found out?
16:37
Yeah, when I came home, there was a conversation because I had
16:41
actually done my testing and I qualified for EOD, explosive
16:48
ordinance disposal. And so my I came home and my my
16:52
dad was like, oh, my step dad was like, yeah, that's great.
16:54
Glad you joined the Air Force. It'll be so great for you.
16:56
What job did you pick? And I said EOD and he said, do
17:00
you want to come home with all your fingers and toes?
17:03
And I was like, well, yeah. And he said that's not the job
17:06
for you. I was like.
17:08
OK, but they were going to give me this?
17:11
Great signing bonus and he's. Like that's.
17:14
That's not the job for you. That's not what you need to be
17:16
doing. And he, he's like, OK, here's a
17:18
list of other jobs that would be, you know, that would be well
17:23
suited to you. And so I went back to the
17:26
recruiter and I was like, I don't think that's going to
17:28
work. And I want to go into finance
17:31
instead. And I'd really like to leave as
17:33
soon as possible. So that's what I ended up doing.
17:37
It's finance. Wow, and the fact that you
17:40
actually got your choice is impressive.
17:43
Yes. Yes, it is.
17:45
Yeah, Very, very rare. I know.
17:50
That happened. So the horror stories I've heard
17:53
about not getting that first choice.
17:57
So, so as far as the training went, did they have it broken
18:04
down like, you know, the first week you'd do, you know,
18:09
receiving, getting all your gear.
18:11
The second week you'd, you'd do, I don't know, some, some kind of
18:15
field training. The next week it'd be firearms.
18:18
Or did did you have a favorite out of all of those?
18:23
I actually love the firearms training.
18:26
That's probably my favorite. I mean, even still to this day,
18:30
I absolutely love, I love shooting.
18:33
It is one of my favorite things to do.
18:35
It's just such a great release, like a stress reliever.
18:38
And my husband is actually a police officer.
18:42
And we love to go in the backyard.
18:44
We have a couple acres and we have a shooting range back
18:47
there. And we love to go in the back
18:49
and just have a little shooting competition and have to carry a
18:53
gun and work, you know, for work every day.
18:54
But I don't. And let's see who's better at
18:56
it. So.
18:58
That's awesome, That's amazing. Same.
19:01
It's one of my, my favorite hobbies is, is to get out and,
19:06
and shoot and, you know, just take out my stress on, on, you
19:14
know, a piece of steel. Yes, exactly.
19:17
It's lots of fun. It is all right.
19:20
Well, in basic training, so you said you had, you know, trying
19:26
calling home and hell, freezing over, which I can't.
19:29
I get that. Were you outside of that time?
19:33
Did you have an opportunity to to call home again or was it
19:38
just had to wait till the end of your training?
19:41
No. I'm I'm sure I did get a couple
19:44
of phone calls home, but that's the most memorable one for me.
19:47
I don't really remember, you know, those each, each phone
19:51
call, I know I got a few letters and that kind of thing, but it
19:54
wasn't, you know, it wasn't something that I really, I don't
20:00
remember those except for that one conversation and maybe one
20:03
of, you know, here's the information for graduation,
20:08
which. Air Force graduation when I
20:11
graduated, you know, 20 some years ago versus Air Force
20:15
graduation today are two different, different
20:18
experiences, so. Really.
20:20
Yes, yeah, yes. So tell me what yours?
20:24
Today of ours was very short and just the parade and, you know,
20:30
basic kind of things like in dress Blues the whole time.
20:35
And then I've recently, you know, within the last year or
20:38
so, got to experience two different Air Force graduations
20:42
and just seeing it's a 2 day event.
20:45
Like it is an event. They're there.
20:47
It's great because you get more time with your, your airmen and
20:50
that kind of thing to be off base and have that liberty.
20:53
But yeah, just, it's just different.
20:56
And I, I love, I love the way they do it now.
20:59
Honestly, like it, They've worked so hard, like to go
21:02
through all of the training and just really getting that giving
21:06
the families that experience both days is an.
21:10
Awful. So yeah, I think that's great.
21:12
That's wonderful. You get through your training
21:18
and where do you go from there? Then I go to Keesler Air Force
21:25
Base in Mississippi for training, for my job, for
21:30
finance, so. OK, so I got to ask this
21:33
question. Here is, you know, this Eastern
21:37
girl from New York, Northeastern in in the Deep South.
21:45
Yes. How did you feel there?
21:51
I mean, the beauty of that is you're still in in tech school
21:56
and so you're, you're really not experiencing really the Deep
22:00
South necessarily. You know, I'm not, not that
22:03
that's not something beautiful to experience.
22:05
It is a great thing to experience, but for me at that
22:10
time, that wasn't my experience. I didn't, I didn't know what I
22:13
didn't know or didn't know really have anything other than
22:17
that base experience and some, you know, some time off base
22:21
with friends and that kind of thing.
22:22
So that the heat was different. I can tell you that that was
22:28
drastic change from, you know, below freezing temperatures in
22:32
New York and switching that to Mississippi was drastically
22:39
different, so drastic. Different.
22:43
OK, I have to ask this question first before we get too far in.
22:48
What was it like for the chow hall in with the Air Force?
22:55
Well, I mean in basic training, not great, but I actually like I
23:00
had to gain weight while I was there.
23:03
And so I actually had to gain weight before they would even
23:07
let me leave to go. Like I needed to put on some
23:10
weight to go. So I I did that and then, you
23:15
know, I had to gain weight. So I had to eat a lot and it was
23:17
just so fast and I was not used to eating that way.
23:20
And so I don't remember the food being great.
23:24
I can tell you that there is nothing that's there's not a
23:27
single thing that I ate in BMT that is memorable.
23:33
I you know, that that little where the different branches
23:39
talk about, you know, the air forces, the spoiled branch gets,
23:44
you know, the lobster and all of that.
23:46
So I was kind of curious how they how they served the
23:50
recruits. During.
23:53
Basic training. You just.
23:55
Never know, never know. No, I will say I don't want to
24:00
get too far ahead of ourselves either, but I did have one of my
24:03
kids was there over the holidays.
24:06
She was at Air Force basic training for Thanksgiving and
24:09
Christmas last year. And so they did serve them a
24:13
fantastic meal for Thanksgiving and let them call home.
24:18
And by that I mean, actually the command staff came in and served
24:23
the meal to the recruits, like the base commander kind of
24:27
thing, like it was or the Wing Commander, I'm not sure exactly
24:30
who. But it was, you know, really,
24:33
really special for her to have that experience.
24:36
So they did take care of them over the holidays, but I wasn't
24:40
there over a holiday. So I don't know about that for
24:42
me. That's fair.
24:44
That that is fair. You OK?
24:47
So you're in Mississippi and tell me what it was like.
24:51
So finance, it was your MOS and had you ever, I mean, dealt with
24:59
anything like that previously? So you're just like, I'm going
25:04
into finance. Well, what my major in college
25:08
was business. So I, I and I had taken some
25:12
accounting classes and I really liked working with numbers.
25:16
So, so I think that's why I was kind of steered in that
25:19
direction. But no, I had never and I don't,
25:24
I'm sure this is going to come as a shock to everybody
25:27
listening, but the way the government handles finances is
25:30
way different than the way people handle finances.
25:32
So I know Talker. I know I I I have a hard time
25:40
believing that nobody. Has a hard time believing that
25:44
doesn't matter where you sit on the political spectrum,
25:47
everybody believes that I. Know and so you're learning this
25:55
you've got numbers you know you're you're good with numbers
25:59
I am not and I know my faults right numbers are not my thing
26:04
so thank goodness for calculators and computers and
26:10
how long was the training that you had to take for for finance
26:14
it's. About 11 weeks I think.
26:18
That's a long time. Yeah, it's, I mean, I feel like
26:22
it was about 11 weeks. It could have been a little bit
26:25
less than that, maybe 9, I don't know.
26:28
It wasn't it wasn't that long. I think my when my daughter just
26:31
went through. She's also in finance, but my.
26:35
Mother like daughter, I love it. Yeah, and I mean, it's actually
26:39
kind of ironic that she actually went into the Air Force at the
26:42
same rank that I left the Air Force doing the same job.
26:46
So it's kind of, it's really an interesting, my ceiling was her
26:52
floor kind of thing heart. And so that's kind of that's a
26:55
special thing I feel in my mama's heart.
26:58
So ANYWAYS, yeah, but yeah, I think hers was maybe a little
27:02
bit less time than mine, but I want to say it was about 11
27:06
weeks, so. Wow.
27:09
And during this time, any funny stories you can recall?
27:14
Probably not. That should be repeated and
27:16
recorded. Nobody's listening.
27:18
It's all good. No, I don't.
27:22
I don't think. I mean, I did get, I got into a
27:24
little bit of trouble while I was there, but I made it
27:27
through, so it's fun. That's good.
27:30
That's always good. You finish your training.
27:35
Yeah. What?
27:36
What happens for you next? Well, right before we finished
27:40
training, I get my duty assignment and it was in Utah
27:46
and I had no idea where Utah was.
27:48
I did not. I was like, I don't even know
27:50
where that is. So I literally had to get on a
27:54
map because that was pre like I can't look it up on my phone
27:57
'cause that wasn't a thing then. So I had to get out the map and
28:00
look and see where I was actually going.
28:02
And I was going to Hill Air Force Base in Utah.
28:05
So yeah, that's that's what happened next.
28:08
And then you get on on a plane again and go to your go to your
28:12
base. So.
28:13
And you get there. And of course, the scenery is
28:16
completely different. Yeah, it's so different.
28:19
So Utah was really definitely something that I did not
28:24
appreciate the beauty of until after I left and came back to
28:29
visit. That's what I would say.
28:35
That's crazy. Yeah, I.
28:38
Just didn't didn't appreciate it.
28:40
I mean, I grew up in in the, in the woods and mountains and that
28:43
kind of thing. And so I just don't think I
28:46
appreciated the scenery and the differences of terrain that the
28:53
state of Utah encompasses, honestly.
28:56
Like it's, you know, you can be in the desert or you could be in
28:59
the mountains skiing. Like it's so, so different.
29:03
And you can do both of those things on the same day, you
29:06
know? Exactly right, yeah.
29:08
Yeah, yeah, it's just kind of crazy, but it's a beautiful,
29:11
beautiful state, so yeah. And so you're there, you're
29:17
starting. And what was it like for you
29:24
your first day of being on the job, you know, doing the
29:31
finances? Yeah.
29:33
So there's a couple different aspects to finance and I there's
29:37
like the customer service side of things and then there's more
29:40
of the accounting and the business side of things.
29:42
And so I was kind of thankful that I got put in the business
29:46
side of things and not the customer service side of things.
29:51
So that that, that first day and even, you know, that just that,
29:56
that first, you know, week or two, really just kind of trying
30:02
to figure out I'm an adult now and this isn't like a legit job.
30:09
I have to show up and I have to do things like, you know, I'm
30:13
expected to be a certain certain places at a certain time, but
30:16
nobody's yelling at me and telling me when and where to be
30:19
there, you know, that kind of thing.
30:20
It's just this is what's expected of me to do the right
30:23
thing. Yeah, and I bet you felt a sense
30:26
of freedom. Yeah, yeah, a freedom I had
30:30
never really had before, but also restricted at the same.
30:36
Time, right, Right. You have your parameters, but
30:39
definitely a freedom I had never really had before because I, I
30:44
was a young, young adult and I had gone to college for a little
30:47
bit. But I've always been the person
30:50
who would help to look after my younger siblings and just things
30:54
like that. And so it was a freedom where I
30:56
only had me to worry about and I so, so far away from anybody
31:01
else. I had no other responsibilities.
31:04
So it was it was good and challenging and new to learn
31:08
those things all at the same time.
31:10
Right. I think that's great that you
31:12
had that opportunity. How long were you there in Utah?
31:16
I I was stationed there for about two years.
31:21
And then in that time, shortly after I got there, I actually
31:26
met my husband. And so he and I got married and
31:32
he deployed a couple times to Iraq.
31:35
And so within that time, I also got pregnant and decided I was
31:39
going to get out of the Air Force because we were on the
31:43
same deployment cycle. And what do you do with a baby
31:46
when you know a girl from a small town in New York where
31:50
he's a guy from a small town in Ohio and no family is around you
31:55
and you're going to deploy together like that doesn't that
31:57
doesn't make sense. That doesn't really work well.
32:00
So I chose to to separate a little bit early and had our
32:06
daughter and you know, was was able to actually go back to work
32:12
sitting at the at the same desk doing the same job in civilian
32:16
clothes instead. Oh.
32:17
Wow. Yeah.
32:21
So all right. And so you then get out of the
32:28
Air Force. Tell me a little bit about any
32:34
kind of resources that the Air Force provided you in how to
32:43
reintegrate back into civilian life.
32:47
You know, I, I think that we had a class that I had gone through
32:53
kind of a, a debriefing, if you will, of, you know, this is,
32:59
this is what you're going to experience and that kind of
33:01
thing. And I'm, I'm sure that they gave
33:05
me some papers with some information for resources on it,
33:10
but I also was young and pregnant and my husband had just
33:17
come back from 1 deployment and he was getting ready to go on
33:21
another. And so I don't know that I
33:24
focused as much on the resources at that time or paid attention
33:30
to them as I probably should have That makes.
33:35
Perfect sense, actually. Our minds when we're pregnant do
33:39
not. Yeah.
33:41
No, those brain cells are gone. They are.
33:45
We're just trying to make it from day-to-day.
33:47
Yes. Yes, absolutely.
33:50
All right. And did you have a job already
33:53
lined up when you got out? Not exactly because I was going
33:58
to have a baby soon, but I had. I knew that they were going to
34:03
have a couple of positions come open within the finance
34:06
department for civilians. And my job towards the end of my
34:11
time within the Air Force actually ended up being a
34:14
twofold kind of thing I was doing.
34:17
I was certifying orders, making sure that there was money for
34:23
deployments, basically. So when at that time, when
34:27
orders came down, they would end up at my desk and I would have
34:33
to say, OK, we have the money for this many people to go and
34:37
this is the line of accounting. It's going to go on that kind of
34:40
thing. So I would have to stamp them.
34:43
Fun fact, I actually signed my husband's first deployment
34:47
orders before we were married. So that was that's what I was
34:50
doing for. That is, that's pretty funny.
34:54
Yeah, the, it's kind of neat to see my my name with his, you
35:00
know, my maiden name on his deployment order.
35:02
So it's kind of kind of interesting.
35:05
And that was probably one of the most impactful things for me.
35:08
We were dating at the time. And he, the Sergeant who always
35:12
brought those orders over, he came and he would always just
35:16
sit and chit chat with me while I certified things and that kind
35:19
of thing. And one day he came over and he
35:20
sat this big old thick folder on my desk and patted it and said,
35:25
I'll be back for these tomorrow. And I was like, I have time
35:27
right now. And he's like, Nope, you're
35:29
going to. I need some time with those.
35:31
And I was like, OK, so yeah. So I signed my husband's
35:37
deployment orders and knew where he was going before he did.
35:40
So. Yeah.
35:42
So that was interesting, but. Yeah, that's crazy.
35:45
I can imagine. Yeah.
35:46
That you knew he was going to be deployed and exactly where that
35:52
is. That's kind of a crazy story.
35:54
Yeah, it's, it's interesting. So, so that was part of my job,
35:58
that was a finance part of my job, but I was also the
36:01
commanders that are squadron commanders, administrative
36:05
assistant. So I was doing both roles at the
36:07
same time. And so that was, you know,
36:12
that's that's what I was doing. And I knew they were going to
36:14
open up a few positions within finance.
36:16
And so after I had my daughter, I was able and, and the
36:22
commander came back from a deployment I had put in for a
36:25
couple of the positions and I, I was able to go back.
36:29
So I did kind of have a job lined up, but not officially
36:33
because I still had to go through the same application
36:35
process right as everyone, everyone else.
36:38
So there were, you know, a few positions open and I got one of
36:42
them, so. Nice, very nice.
36:45
And how difficult was it being a mom and going back to work?
36:52
Yeah. And having your spouse deployed.
36:57
Yes, yeah, that was definitely challenging.
37:01
I don't know that I was fully ready for that, but apparently
37:04
the Lord thought I was because that's how life played out.
37:07
So I definitely learned a lot about myself and got to grow and
37:16
I'm grateful for the the family of fellow airmen that I had then
37:23
as well as the civilians that worked within the finance
37:27
department. Right before I left, there was
37:30
another civilian there who is getting ready to retire.
37:34
She was a sweet lady who is named Deanne.
37:37
And she actually said by the time you get to go back to work,
37:42
I'll be ready to do something. And I would love to watch your
37:45
daughter. And so she like I had child care
37:49
lined up and I would take her. It was like my daughter had, you
37:53
know, a little grandma that she would go to grandma's house
37:55
every day while I went to work. And so that was really the
37:59
community and the family and the way that I hope that it's like
38:04
this in all branches. But I do feel this for the Air
38:07
Force specifically was you just support each other and you help
38:11
each other figure it out. And, you know, especially a
38:15
friend of mine had a, a baby exactly a month before me.
38:19
So we were kind of going through those things together and just
38:22
having that, you know, helping each other grow through those,
38:25
right? Yeah, yeah, And you got to learn
38:28
from hers. A.
38:30
Little bit, a little bit. You're just, you're just a
38:32
little bit ahead of me. So it's funny.
38:36
Yeah. So yeah.
38:38
And and so you go through that role where you're working in
38:42
finance still as a civilian and what happens next for you?
38:50
How long are you there for? And then what happens next?
38:53
My husband deployed another time and then we were there probably,
38:59
I mean we were there a total of our four years.
39:01
His four year term ended and we decided that that was kind of
39:05
enough for us. And so we decided to move back
39:11
to Ohio where he was from. So that's that's what we did.
39:15
And when I left, I did have an opportunity that I could have
39:20
put in for a job at Wright Patt Air Force Base, but I chose not
39:24
to. We kind of I wanted to be able
39:26
to stay home with our daughter. So we were moving and, and that
39:33
that's what I did when we got here.
39:34
About a couple weeks after we got here, I found out I was
39:37
pregnant with our son. And so I was like one, I'm
39:40
really not going back to work right now.
39:42
We'll just kind of play this out and see how it goes.
39:44
So yeah. You know, and we, we had some, a
39:49
lot of our relationship at that up to that point, you know, he
39:52
had been deployed twice. So we had a lot of time apart
39:56
and I had figured out how to be a mom without him there.
40:00
And now I needed to figure out how we could be a family.
40:03
And you know, that was a huge part of of why we decided to
40:08
separate also from the Air Force.
40:10
At that time was when he came back from his second deployment,
40:13
our daughter didn't know who he was.
40:14
And that's not the kind of dad that he wanted to be nor the
40:19
kind of dad that I wanted for for our children.
40:22
So it was important to us that we had present parenting.
40:26
We were present parents. And that's not something we had
40:31
when we were growing up, so it was important for us to give
40:34
that to our kids. Right.
40:36
And so, all right, so you have a second child.
40:40
Yep, I have. A son?
40:42
Yeah. Congratulations.
40:44
And then what happens once he's born?
40:50
Oh well, I don't know, it's a blur after that, no.
40:58
It flies by it. Does fly by, but after that, I
41:01
mean, I, I did, I spent a good amount of time being able to be
41:04
a stay at home mom and with both of the kids.
41:07
And my husband was going, he, he became a corrections officer and
41:12
was going through the police Academy and became a police
41:14
officer. And so we, you know, we went
41:18
from a point of life where a season felt like he was, he
41:23
would deploy for chunks of time at, you know, for a good chunk
41:26
of time. And then sometimes being a
41:30
police officer's wife, sometimes you feel like you're sending
41:32
your husband out to a deployment every day, you know, and so it's
41:36
just a different, different kind of danger and a different kind
41:40
of stuff that they deal with. And I feel like I do feel like
41:44
my time in the Air Force helped me to develop some resiliency
41:51
that's necessary for having a husband who's a police officer
41:57
who is, you know, a Iraqi war veteran.
42:01
He's got things that he deals with from that and just the job
42:07
of being police officer. And now I have two kids who are
42:10
also in the Air Force. So I think that my time taught
42:14
me a lot of things about resiliency and the strength and
42:19
the understanding that's required to love and support
42:23
people in those career fields. I think that's wonderful.
42:28
And to be able to support the people, the people, excuse me,
42:31
the people who support those people, you know, just even even
42:36
having our kids go through basic training, both of them went
42:38
through basic training in the same year.
42:41
I back-to-back, I had kids. Dad had to.
42:45
I couldn't have done it. That was.
42:47
That was a challenge. It was, it was rough, so.
42:51
Oh my gosh, and basic training for them now is how long?
42:55
That is 7 weeks, 8 weeks, I don't remember.
43:00
That sounds so bad. It was just like literally last
43:02
year. But I want to say it's 8 weeks
43:05
or just a little less. I think it's 7 1/2, but but
43:09
yeah, so back-to-back pretty much one graduated, we went to
43:13
his graduation and then just shortly after that, within two
43:17
months, the next one was going to basic training.
43:22
So. Wow, as a mom, right, that's
43:27
that I can't speak for dads. I don't want to speak for dads,
43:31
but I know as a Marine mom that you know, just not being able to
43:38
and there in the Marines, they don't get to call home, right.
43:43
You, you're lucky if they write, I think you, you will get one
43:49
like they will make you write one home.
43:53
But you know, I mean, sometimes you, you'd get a letter,
43:58
sometimes you wouldn't get a letter.
43:59
It just would depend. Heck, I didn't even get the
44:02
actual phone call to say that they made it there 'cause he was
44:06
at he was at A at a booth, little phone booth that wasn't
44:10
hooked up. Oh.
44:13
And so he'd hold it up to his ear.
44:15
He'd dial the number and not even a dial tone.
44:19
And, you know, and he'd wait and he'd wait.
44:21
And then, you know, enough time that he thought he should wait.
44:25
And then he'd hang it up and he'd say, you know, this recruit
44:28
was unable to get in contact with anybody.
44:31
Try again. OK.
44:33
Oh, my God. So that's funny.
44:39
And all I could tell myself as a mother is no news is good news.
44:44
No news is. Good news is good news.
44:47
Yeah, but even still, you know, I mean, I came this close from
44:50
calling the recruiter's office to check and see did he actually
44:53
make it? I mean, was he on the bus?
44:55
We. Actually sent him off or not
44:58
yeah right. Yeah, yeah.
45:00
So it's kudos too different now they call home with their own
45:03
cell phones. At least for the Air Force,
45:05
they. Turn their the Marines.
45:06
They still cannot have them. They don't get to have them
45:10
except for that one thing. They can only make a phone call,
45:14
that is. That is it.
45:15
So nothing. OK.
45:17
All right. Text message, no FaceTime, no
45:21
anything of like that. It was just just a phone call,
45:25
so. And is it as fast as as you see
45:28
on YouTube, this is, you know, recruit so and so blah, blah,
45:32
blah. I've made it to this like that,
45:34
OK. And very scripted and and I was
45:37
like, oh, OK, well, good luck to you.
45:40
I'll be praying for you. Love you.
45:45
So, so how did you go from your your having your second child
45:54
and then going back? Did you go right back to work
45:58
with them or did you start your own business?
46:03
So I, I think over the years I've done a lot of things I, but
46:06
primarily I was a stay at home mom, but I did dabble in some
46:11
direct sales business that got us in a whole lot of debt.
46:16
I made some really bad financial choices and I mean, we together
46:22
because even though I was in finance within the Air Force,
46:26
like I said earlier, government finance and people finance are
46:29
two different things. So, you know, it's just I didn't
46:33
really, I never really learned how to handle money in a good
46:38
healthy way. So I grew up, you know, with a
46:41
single mom and we spent everything that came in.
46:45
My husband, on the other hand, grew up with a single mom and
46:48
she is very frugal and very diligent about saving money and
46:52
you know, and that kind of thing.
46:54
And so it's too different worlds and trying to to blend those
46:58
things and figure out what we do with money and made a whole lot
47:02
of bad decisions with money and got into quite a bit of debt.
47:07
And so we spent some time doing odd jobs for myself.
47:11
My husband always had a, a main, you know, job, like, he was
47:16
always the primary breadwinner for our family.
47:20
But I would do odd, odd things, but not odd, like weird, just
47:26
odd jobs. Like I babysat for other people,
47:29
you know, just, I would, I grew produce and I sold it.
47:34
I've, you know, canned Pickles and salsa and sold those things
47:38
and just little things here or there to, to make some extra
47:43
money to be able to pay off the debt that we had incurred.
47:47
And yeah, that's, that's was really what I did over the
47:51
years. But really my, my main focus was
47:54
always in doing some ministry and then also taking care of our
47:59
kids and raising them in a good solid home and giving them a
48:04
place that they could come to and feel safe.
48:07
And just just raising them how we felt like they needed to be
48:12
raised. And not letting somebody else do
48:14
that for us was important to to us and how we wanted to have our
48:18
family so. Yeah.
48:21
Well, and that is important and I'm glad that you had that
48:23
opportunity to do that. Yeah, I'm very fortunate and
48:26
very blessed that I that I did get to have that opportunity.
48:30
So I don't take that for granted.
48:31
So. So tell me how you became then a
48:34
financial coach? Because I made a whole lot of
48:36
bad decisions with money. That's really what it boils down
48:42
to in a nutshell. But we, we did a whole lot of
48:45
dumb things with money one time and we dug ourselves out of
48:48
debt. And you know, then we didn't
48:52
learn our lesson. And so we like tripled the
48:55
amount of debt we were in and did it all over.
48:57
And, and none of it even included a mortgage.
49:00
It was house and a travel trailer or not house, a car and
49:04
a truck and a travel trailer and this and that and the other
49:07
thing. And so we just did a whole lot
49:09
of normal dumb things as well. So many, so many people do.
49:15
And it just. Exactly.
49:17
It became a point for us where it was no longer OK to be living
49:22
like that. That's not how we wanted to
49:23
live. And so the second time, you
49:26
know, by the grace of God, we got out of debt again.
49:29
We, we worked super, super hard to do that a second time.
49:32
I was like, no, I'm not going to do this again.
49:34
And I am going to help other people to get out of this hole.
49:40
Because sometimes when you've gone through something, the best
49:42
thing you can do is reach your hand down and pull the next
49:46
person up, you know, and, and help somebody else to do that.
49:49
And so that's, that's what I do. I started my own business doing
49:52
financial coaching. I went through the training that
49:54
I needed to to become a Ramsey certified financial coach.
49:59
I'm sure there's a different way I'm supposed to actually say
50:01
that, but I doubt that. You I won't do.
50:04
Listening so no, you know, whatever I'm sure there's a
50:08
there's a specific term I'm supposed to use and I don't
50:10
remember what it is, but I did go through that training and now
50:15
have kind of adapted some of the things because I do think that I
50:19
find value in cutting back what you need to.
50:22
But I also have found times where we really just need to
50:25
also be able to live our lives and enjoy our life and not feel
50:30
like we can only eat rice and beans, beans and rice kind of
50:33
thing. Unless that's your jam, then go
50:35
for it, but that's not mine. So you know, I think that that's
50:39
important. So that's that's what I do.
50:41
I love to be able to help other people and coach them through
50:45
some things and and just walk alongside them.
50:48
It's really an and a privilege to be able to walk through that
50:52
with somebody else and and offer that guidance.
50:56
I that's wonderful. Now is this a a nonprofit or a
50:59
for profit business? No, it is a for profit business.
51:02
So I'm not not done the paperwork to become a nonprofit.
51:06
I don't know that that's something that I really I want
51:09
to do, but I do offer a free strategy session for people.
51:15
Like it's not, you know, everything isn't paid.
51:17
Like there are some free resources and that kind of
51:19
thing. And so just that private
51:22
one-on-one time with me regularly, you know, is is a
51:29
paid writing. So yeah.
51:33
And if somebody were interested in retaining your services,
51:39
where's the best place for them to go?
51:42
Yeah, they can visit my website, tianalambert.com it there,
51:47
there's lots of information on there and there is a link to
51:52
even book that free strategy session.
51:54
So I do typically work with primarily women and couples.
51:59
I don't generally work with men by themselves, such as not I
52:03
can, but I prefer not to because it's just not a, not a situation
52:08
I really enjoy being, to be perfectly honest.
52:12
Like, no, that's perfectly fine. But I, I don't mind working with
52:16
couples. I really love working with
52:17
couples, honestly, because there's a lot of different
52:20
dynamics to work through and figuring out who's the spender,
52:24
who's the saver, who's the, you know, doing, doing different
52:28
things and in the relational aspect of that.
52:30
But I don't primarily work with, I don't work with men on their
52:34
own kind of thing. Yeah, I was going to try and
52:38
bring it up, but for some reason it's saying that it can't OK,
52:44
let me it said it can't be reached.
52:47
It took too long to respond. So I don't know if the Internet
52:51
is just freaking out. I have no idea.
52:53
I our connection is great, but I know in the chats at the
52:57
beginning they there was some buffering and such.
53:00
So OK, who knows? I know the bill was paid so.
53:06
Let's see, I put it in the the chat.
53:09
I don't know if you can see it or not, but.
53:11
Let's see if it pops. There we go.
53:13
OK, And I'm going to go ahead and share that so that everybody
53:17
can see it. OK, let's see.
53:27
There we go. OK, So if somebody is interested
53:35
in retaining your services, they can go here and I'm just split
53:41
my screen so I can see what I'm doing here.
53:44
And so it's a six week coach. Yeah, I have a group coaching
53:51
program that starts again in October.
53:55
And then if you Scroll down just a little bit there, there's a
53:58
little bit more, a little bit further, there's a little bit
54:03
about me you can actually read. Like I wrote a couple of blog
54:07
posts on there about our financial story and just some of
54:11
the things we've been through. But right there where it says
54:14
free real life money strategy session, they could book a free
54:17
session with me right there. It's like a 30 to 45 minute
54:20
session. We'll talk through what's going
54:22
on with their money and I'll offer some practical tips and
54:26
things like that that I would do if I were in their shoes and
54:29
they can, you know, decide if they want to work with me
54:33
further. But there's no hard sales pitch
54:35
coming Like it's, it's just like that basically what I just said.
54:38
If you want to work with me further, here's the options.
54:41
And if not, that's OK. I hope you you found value in
54:45
our time together. So.
54:46
Wow, that's wonderful. And so before we get to to
54:54
wrapping things up, if there's anybody that's in the chats who
54:57
has any questions for Tiana, go ahead please and get those put
55:01
out there. Now let's see.
55:07
I will offer a slight disclaimer, I I am not a
55:10
financial advisor or financial planner, so I'm not doing any
55:15
investing. I don't sell any insurance
55:17
products, nothing like that. It's just coaching and getting
55:21
people through whatever they're dealing with and giving them
55:24
somebody to ask questions to who's a real person and not
55:28
ChatGPT. Always A+.
55:35
So all right, let's see. It's so you can always get your
55:43
name out there more by doing the Misses USA contest.
55:48
I think I'll pass. Thank you.
55:51
I'll pass on that. OK.
55:55
So yeah, go ahead and get your your questions in the chats for
56:00
Tiana. And then again, make sure if you
56:03
haven't already, hit that subscribe button and then the
56:10
notification bell as well. Tell me about so your kids, when
56:19
they decided that they wanted to join, is it something that you
56:23
as a family talked about in advance or was it something that
56:27
they came to you and said, I want to do this?
56:31
I think for our son, we always knew like that was the route he
56:36
was going to go. He, you know, did some like went
56:41
to a career technology Center for criminal justice and, and
56:46
that kind of thing. And we like school is just not
56:49
his favorite thing. And so we knew that that was the
56:52
avenue he wanted to go. And so those conversations were
56:57
happening for years with him, which branch.
57:00
And in fact, when as soon as he turned, I think it's like 16
57:03
that could he could sign his delayed entry paperwork.
57:06
He was like, when can we go to the recruiter?
57:09
Like, I am ready to do this. And so I was like, I'm not ready
57:12
for you to do this. But we did finally go and do
57:16
that. And so that's the route he went.
57:18
My daughter was a little bit more of a surprise, but it was
57:22
still the, you know, probably late, mid to late of her junior
57:27
year. And we were having those
57:28
conversations. And she had actually started out
57:31
in ROTC and her program changed. And so she ended up deciding she
57:38
would go into the National Guard instead.
57:41
And so that's, that's what she did.
57:44
And it was it's, it's different sitting on the side of the mom
57:50
than it is the side of the Airman, for sure.
57:52
Just thinking of. Like, you know, man, at least
57:56
I've already done these things. And so I I knew a little bit
58:00
more what to expect and, and that kind of thing.
58:02
But I don't know that anything really prepares you for that.
58:06
But it's, it was helpful, I suppose.
58:09
But yeah, it was just conversations we had.
58:11
And I think she never wavered from Air Force.
58:14
It was always Air Force. I think our son, his rebellion
58:17
times was talking about doing the Marine Corps at one point.
58:21
And I was like, that recruiter is going to have to get through
58:23
your Mama. So I don't think that's going to
58:25
happen, you know, But all, all branches are phenomenal and, you
58:32
know, serve well. I've just got to make a little
58:35
bit of fun at another branch. So there was no way he was going
58:38
that route. I was like, no, it's Air Force
58:41
or bust, buddy. That's great.
58:47
You have this moment, this opportunity to speak to the
58:52
younger generation of military. What words of wisdom do you have
59:00
for them? I think I would start with
59:03
speaking to somebody who's not decided to join yet.
59:07
I would start with them and say it is the the best decision I
59:12
ever made in my whole life. It has set me up and open doors
59:16
and opportunities and given me built character within me and
59:24
taught me lessons that I didn't know that I needed to learn.
59:27
And I don't see people learning and developing skills outside of
59:32
of military service. So I think that there's a pride
59:35
that comes with that and just a sense of community and
59:41
brotherhood or sisterhood or whatever that you don't get
59:45
anywhere else. And so I would, I would highly
59:47
encourage those considering to join those that are already in
59:52
make it the be the best that you can be and make it the best that
59:58
you can make out of it. It may not be the the location
1:00:01
you want to be in right now. You may not be in the job you
1:00:04
want to be in right now. You.
1:00:08
But you have the ability to make it the best of any situation
1:00:13
that you're in. And so I would definitely say
1:00:16
that. And to those in, I would also
1:00:18
say I'd be remiss if I didn't say get your finances in order.
1:00:23
Like seriously, like you don't even have to have a conversation
1:00:27
with me. But really make sure that you're
1:00:29
investing, especially those young, young service members,
1:00:34
make sure that you start out the gate taking some money out of
1:00:37
your paycheck for the TSP. And if you can, open a Roth IRA
1:00:41
and put some money away for that because time is your best friend
1:00:46
when it comes to investing for your retirement.
1:00:48
And it may feel like it's so far away, but it happens like that
1:00:55
blink of an eye and and you're at the age that you can retire
1:00:59
from, from service. And then you have the ability to
1:01:02
choose if you've invested wisely whether you are going to have a
1:01:05
second career or not, depending on what you have done
1:01:09
financially. So those would be my biggest
1:01:11
things that I would say. Yeah, that's that's some great
1:01:15
advice. I know a lot of just from
1:01:21
experience from mine, right, my children who are in the military
1:01:26
and finance was not their thing. No, and it's.
1:01:30
Not most of their thing. Right.
1:01:33
I didn't want to, you know, generalize, but I could speak
1:01:37
definitely to mine. And it's so important to have
1:01:42
that get in the habit of watching those expenditures and
1:01:47
saving some money. Nowadays, especially I can speak
1:01:52
to my youngest Marine who he would order food in.
1:01:58
So you had, you know, I mean, as it is, they're taking 400 and
1:02:02
something dollars out a month just for the chow hall, whether
1:02:07
you eat there or not. And he's ordering Uber eats or
1:02:13
DoorDash for a pizza or Taco Bell or goodness knows what.
1:02:21
And so he's putting out there seven hundred $800 a month,
1:02:28
depending upon how how often you know he's doing this.
1:02:32
And because it's not cheap, you know, but with between the
1:02:35
delivery fees and such. So it to me it's it's like
1:02:40
that's just basic and and I said I'm not good at numbers, but I
1:02:43
am good with common sense. That was, yeah, that made no
1:02:48
sense to me. No, it doesn't and it and I
1:02:51
will. I don't also don't want to
1:02:52
general generalize either too much, but I will say just in
1:02:57
conversations that I've had with my kids and some, some of the
1:03:02
other Airmen or other service branches of the service that are
1:03:06
younger, they, they, those people do not have a grasp
1:03:12
because they're also not taught. Like they're not taught how to
1:03:15
manage money well. And the military doesn't teach
1:03:18
you that either. No, it's not, It's not something
1:03:21
that's taught and it should be and probably could be, but it's
1:03:25
just not, that's not what they're great at.
1:03:27
So I think that it's super important just to have a grasp
1:03:31
on that. And, and you are absolutely
1:03:33
right, DoorDash, Uber Eats, subscription services, doesn't
1:03:38
matter if you're a young service member or, you know, in your 50s
1:03:43
and a coaching client. Like it's people are paying so
1:03:47
much for subscription services and it is wild.
1:03:51
So it's, it's, it's stealing their retirement for sure.
1:03:55
And their ability to even have money for a basic emergency of a
1:03:59
flat tire. Yeah, that's that's the thing.
1:04:03
I'm, you know, you sit there and you're like, OK, my water heater
1:04:07
goes out. It's not just a couple $100,
1:04:10
it's a couple thousand. Yes, it is, right.
1:04:13
You've got to be. I mean, it's one thing to plan
1:04:17
for new Windows, plan for things of that nature for a home, but
1:04:23
it's those little incidentals that have a big impact on, you
1:04:29
know, you got to be able to wash your clothes, clothes and wash
1:04:32
your dishes. Some hot water comes in pretty
1:04:34
darn handy, but the shower so. Yeah, and it is.
1:04:39
It is a, you know, even $1000 starter kind of emergency fund
1:04:44
almost isn't enough. You know.
1:04:47
But it's a great place to start. It's better to have $1000 set
1:04:51
aside in case something happens as opposed to having nothing and
1:04:55
then, you know, you have to put it on a credit card or maybe you
1:04:58
don't have credit cards because you have no credit and you
1:05:01
can't, can't do anything like that.
1:05:02
You know, you're really up a Creek.
1:05:04
So I think that it's so important to, you know, find
1:05:09
somebody that you feel like you could be mentored by to give you
1:05:14
some good financial pointers. Like there's, there's great
1:05:16
advice out there on YouTube on, you know, social media, on
1:05:21
wherever podcasts, wherever you want to listen to things, but
1:05:25
there's also some really, really bad advice.
1:05:27
So make sure that you are finding somebody who's solid and
1:05:30
has, you know, a good basis that they're they're teaching so.
1:05:38
I think that's great. So Ron Wayne says thank you for
1:05:41
your service, Tina, great story. Thank you.
1:05:44
Jim says great story and resilience in your service, your
1:05:48
life. Bravo, thank you.
1:05:50
Jason says thank you for your service, ma'am.
1:05:54
Thank you. And Jim says compounding
1:05:57
interest does wonders. It's a miracle.
1:06:00
That compounding interest, man, how that math works, it's
1:06:04
amazing, yeah. He also says you could do a
1:06:06
seminar for every branch of service, new recruits on
1:06:09
financial planning for their future.
1:06:11
At least the, you know, those highlights that we've briefly
1:06:14
talked about that, you know, something to maybe put out
1:06:19
there, expand the business a little bit, yes.
1:06:22
Yes, absolutely, that's a great idea.
1:06:25
Yeah. So Jim says rule of thumb back
1:06:27
in the day was six months reserved for reserve of what
1:06:30
your monthly living costs are. I can't even fathom that
1:06:37
happening today with our youth. Yeah, I think that it's
1:06:42
important to have like a good three to six month emergency
1:06:46
fund of your basic living expenses.
1:06:48
So that doesn't mean three to six months worth of your
1:06:51
paycheck. That means what does it take for
1:06:53
you to be able to survive if you don't have a paycheck.
1:06:56
So, and I especially think that's important for people who
1:07:01
are married, who have children, that kind of thing.
1:07:04
You know, hopefully they have some sort of life insurance.
1:07:06
I know service members do, but sometimes it takes a while for
1:07:10
that stuff to come in. And what are you going to do to
1:07:11
pay your bills if something happens to your spouse and so or
1:07:15
you're laid off and you can't work because you know you're no
1:07:18
longer in the service and you didn't save?
1:07:20
Like there are so many variables, but that three to six
1:07:23
month emergency fund is super important.
1:07:26
And I will tell you that there are younger service members who
1:07:30
are actually doing it. It's possible they do exist so.
1:07:35
That warms my heart, yes. I'm not going to go on them
1:07:38
completely, you know, for for that the younger generation, I
1:07:42
don't want to be that person, but they do exist there.
1:07:45
There are those that are making good financial choices and
1:07:48
hopefully they can be a good light to others around them as
1:07:53
well and a good example to others so.
1:07:55
Yeah, I think that's great. Jason says.
1:07:58
Great show. I think he meant to say, Tiana,
1:08:02
you type a little fast, you know that?
1:08:03
Yeah. Thank you again for service.
1:08:05
Also, please tell your husband and kids the same as well.
1:08:08
Thank you. And of course, oh.
1:08:12
My gosh. Oh, Lambert outdoors.
1:08:16
He's my favorite veteran. I bet, Jason says.
1:08:19
Are you a little biased? He might.
1:08:21
Be. So well, I think and Terry,
1:08:26
Terry Lynch says thank you for sharing your story and your
1:08:29
insight. It has been an absolute pleasure
1:08:32
having you on. And if you want to hang tight
1:08:34
for me for just just a few, we're going to go ahead and get
1:08:37
things wrapped up. So thank you for having me.
1:08:41
It's been my pleasure for everybody else.
1:08:43
Please have a wonderful, wonderful rest of your week
1:08:47
coming up. Join me next Sunday.
1:08:50
I do have a show with a Vietnam veteran.
1:08:54
And so we will see you again next Sunday at 6:00 PM Central
1:09:00
time. Everybody have a great one.
1:09:02
Hi, I'm beaker with military broadcast radio TV.
1:09:06
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