The Veteran Voices podcast – now in its fourth season on Supply Chain Now – gives a voice to those that have served in the United States Armed Forces. Veterans and Veterans advocates sit down with Army Veteran and host Mary Kate Soliva to talk about the challenges associates with transitioning from active duty to the private sector as well as large scale issues impacting Veterans today. Just as important, they share their stories, their motivation for joining the military, and talk about what they learned along the way.

To celebrate the new season of the show, Mary Kate was joined by Scott Luton and Marina Rabinek, Founder and President of the Military Women’s Collective, to reflect on the past and look forward to the great things yet to come.

In this livestream-based conversation, Mary Kate, Scott, and Marina discuss:
• Favorite episodes and moments from season three
• The unique challenges faced by women in active service as well as in the Veteran community
• Critical Veterans’ issues that everyone should be more aware of
• Some of the amazing and impactful non-profit organizations affiliated with the show and its guests

Intro/Outro (00:02):

Welcome to Veteran Voices. A podcast is dedicated to giving a voice to those that have served in the United States Armed Forces on this series, jointly presented by Supply Chain now and Vets to industry. We sit down with a wide variety of veterans and veteran advocates to gain their insights, perspective, and stories from serving. We talk with many individuals about their challenging transition from active duty to the private sector, and we discuss some of the most vital issues facing veterans today. Join us for this episode of Veteran Voices.

Scott Luton (00:49):

Hey. Hey, good morning, good afternoon, good evening, wherever you are, Scott Luton, Mary Kate Saliva, and Marina Ick here with you on a special joint edition of Supply Chain Now and Veteran Voices. So welcome to today’s show, Mary Kate. How you doing?

Mary Kate Soliva (01:02):

Great, Scott. How are you doing? Happy Friday

Scott Luton (01:05):

To you as well. What an incredible week, Marina. How are you doing?

Marina Rabinek (01:09):

Hello. Hello. I’m doing wonderful and happy Friday and happy weekend everybody.

Scott Luton (01:14):

<laugh>. Happy all of it to all of you, is kinda how we wanna start. All the things. All the things. Thank you, marina. Wait, I am tickled. Our team is tickled. Y’all both are back with us. You know, it seems like it was just yesterday and we were doing the Veterans Day episode, right where me and you and all three of us and Zach joined us. But today we get to focus on the two of you. And of course, we’re big admirers of all that y’all do. So Mary Kate saliva, anda ick. Welcome, welcome, welcome. And to all other folks out there, get ready. We wanna hear from you as we work through this conversation. We’re gonna be talking about their veteran journeys, marina and Mary Kate’s veteran journey. We’re gonna be talking about National Women’s History Month. We’re gonna be talking about of course, season four Veteran voices and a whole lot more. Marina, you ready to go?

Marina Rabinek (02:01):

You know, I’m

Scott Luton (02:02):

Always ready. Always ready. Always ready You, Mary Kate.

Marina Rabinek (02:05):

Oh, isn’t that for P2? Right? Glad

Scott Luton (02:10):

It’s been. It’s it’s been a while since my PT days and, and I ain’t complaining. Do

Marina Rabinek (02:16):

They do that in the Army? Mary Kate <laugh>,

Scott Luton (02:19):

Mary Kate, the, the how did PT go in the Army? It

Mary Kate Soliva (02:22):

No pep up. No, no pep talk ahead of time. It just gossiped for it. <laugh>.

Scott Luton (02:30):

Well, if our listeners can’t tell, we’re gonna have a blast here. So, quick programming note. So the, the video replay of today’s special episode you can find over at supply chain now and the audio replay. In fact, some folks may be tuned in right now listening to the audio replay on the Veteran Voices podcast, which is now in season four. Okay. And Gloria Mar, great to have you back with us here today. I’ve enjoyed your remarks and previous streams, so looking forward to hearing your take here today. And Marina, I love how you can do se do 17 things at once. So keep up the great work. All right. So where are we starting today? I think we wanna start, we’ve had a good fortune of having Mary Kate, of course, who hosts Veteran Voices and Marina, who’s been a great guest on several occasions. Many of y’all may know, be familiar with their, their military journeys. But just, I wanna refresh cause we forget things quickly here. So Mary Kate, let’s start with you in a nutshell. Tell us what you did in the Army and, and some things that folks should know about your, your time in active duty. I know you’re still in the guard, right? Is that right? Mary Kate?

Marina Rabinek (03:31):

Oh

Mary Kate Soliva (03:31):

Gosh, nos cut. I’m just kidding. The reserves. I’m in the

Scott Luton (03:34):

Reserves.

Marina Rabinek (03:35):

It’s

Mary Kate Soliva (03:35):

Okay. Not the same, but it’s okay.

Scott Luton (03:37):

Not the same Air

Mary Kate Soliva (03:38):

Scott Scott’s Air Force <laugh>. We just defaulted that

Marina Rabinek (03:42):

<laugh>.

Mary Kate Soliva (03:44):

Noah, thank you so much Scott. Honestly, it just super pumped up about this next new season of Veteran Voices. And of course I had to bring Marina longtime veteran sister and it took us so long actually for Marina and I to even meet in person. But we were both transitioning off active duty the same time I transitioned off the off of active duty in 2021, right in the middle of the pandemic. I was an Army medic. And then I, uh, went to selection, picked up to be a psychological operation soldier. So ended up down at Fort Bragg at some point during my transition. And that’s where I met Marina. So quick, like ten second nutshell, it’s been a whirlwind of an experience for my, my Army career, but my army experiences and the network that I gained during that time, volunteering, especially while I was still wearing the uniform, has helped launch me. Once I hung up that uniform to continue to, to continue survey, even though I got one slid in, one slid out, I feel like I’m doing so much more now.

Scott Luton (04:38):

Oh, undoubtedly. And you know, my, so my dad was in a National Guard for over 30 years. So if I ever say National Guard and mean National Reserve or the Reserve, that’s why, that is why Mary Kate, you have been on the reserve side for how long?

Mary Kate Soliva (04:53):

Gosh, it’s going on two years now.

Scott Luton (04:55):

Two years now. Okay.

Mary Kate Soliva (04:57):

I’ve known Marina <laugh>,

Scott Luton (04:59):

So, and Marina, I wanna pick back up there. So it took you a little, little while to get connected, but you were with United States Navy, I believe, right? So tell us more. Yeah,

Marina Rabinek (05:10):

Go Navy, beat Army. Yes. So I did, I did 24th in the Navy and yeah, Mary Kate and I got, or out around the same time I just hit my two year retire anniversary. That’s a word. Okay. Back on March 1st. So what, like a couple weeks ago, not even. And yeah, I was doing Sonar technician things for about 18 of those 24 years. And then the last six years I started doing equal opportunity diversity and inclusion type work, which, which led me to the nonprofit work that I do now. And yeah. And yes, we did get to meet finally in DC and, and go hang out and it was amazing. I got to hug Mary Kate like 11 billion times, which <laugh>, that’s like the most amazing thing of the world.

Scott Luton (06:01):

So Marina and Mary Kate. So when did y’all meet? How long is it? About two years ago. I

Marina Rabinek (06:09):

Last year.

Scott Luton (06:11):

Last

Mary Kate Soliva (06:11):

Year went in person. Oh, we went in person this last year. I played. Yep. Cause the, I remember it was Sunny and we were at the National Harbor. So like Ferris wheel Sunset, beautiful time.

Marina Rabinek (06:24):

Beautiful.

Mary Kate Soliva (06:24):

Like a romantic like walk on the beach kinda thing.

Scott Luton (06:30):

So what event in DC Marina, what, what, where did y’all meet? Was it an event? It’s a big show. What was it?

Marina Rabinek (06:38):

Oh no, I was, so I was flying out to the East coast to meet up with, so not only do I, as you can see underneath M W C, right? Yep. Not only do I have my own nonprofit, but I also work for one too <laugh>. And so I was going out to the east to meet up with that whole crew. Yeah. Cause you know, we were all remote and we were going to be meeting up in Atlantic City, but before I went out there I was like, Hey, you know what, I need to, you know, see all my people. So I went to DC and then went to do the stuff with, you know, in Atlantic City. And then I went to Philly and you know, I just did some kind of East coast traveling.

Mary Kate Soliva (07:21):

Was great answer to this question. The right answer was that you came all the way from California just only

Marina Rabinek (07:26):

To see Mary Kay.

Mary Kate Soliva (07:28):

Right answer. You could have given, I don’t know, this long roundabout story and I’ll, what could

Scott Luton (07:34):

I ask you? It sounded like one heck of a trip. DC Atlantic City, Philadelphia. Y’all got that? Yeah. Celebrity,

Mary Kate Soliva (07:42):

Veteran celebrity here.

Scott Luton (07:44):

Well, we are, I’m the Atlanta chair of both the Mary Kay Saliva and Marina Rabbinic fan club. So, uh, we really admire what y’all do and we’re gonna be talking about more about your nonprofits and all the great work you’re doing there towards the second half of the show. But let’s do this. We got lots to celebrate beyond getting back together again and, and checking in on what y’all got going on and all the great work you’re doing. Season four of Veteran Voices has launched. Mary Kate, you’ve been doing excellent work and you know, we launched with the first episode of season four. Was this lifting as he climbs featuring Iron Mike Steadman, I think I got that right. A Marine Corps veteran. So Mary Kate, that’s two part question here and then we’ll get Marina to chime in too. If you could give us your favorite part of maybe this conversation with Mike and then maybe share some things that, that folks can expect from season four of Veteran Voices.

Mary Kate Soliva (08:40):

Yes. So season four, I really admire Iron Mike Simmons so much. I mean, he’s a three-time national boxing champion. Naval camera grab Marine Corps officer, combat veteran amongst as many hats that he’s wearing. He continues to serve beyond the uniform, which is what I love about Veteran Voices, amplifying the voices of veterans like Iron Mike. We are also both in the Hoover Fellowship, Hoover Veteran fellowship program together, which quick shout out applications on March 27th for that. But the fact that Mike and I were able to do that together, I really got to see him shine and really see what he’s doing with, for the inner city kids in New York, New Jersey through Iron Ironbound Academy, Ironbound boxing. So you can check him out and I mean, he’s also podcast entrepreneur doing great things. So you get to, what I love about the episode is the fact of, like Mike comes from humble beginnings.

Mary Kate Soliva (09:30):

It wasn’t something that was handed to him on a silver platter. He really worked his tail off and he continues to work his tail off to just be out there and to make it happen. He finds a way to be innovative with having not much of anything and he can make, take something a little and make it something great. And that’s why I think you can get a lot of value from, from Iron y is just learning how to turn something great when you got just limited resources and he’s making it happen. So for Veteran Voices as a whole, just super excited.

Scott Luton (10:00):

Mary Kate, can I, can I, can I interrupt just for a second? Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. Just in how you teed that up. I’m ready to run through the wall behind me and, and folks, y’all gotta go check out that interview that Mary Kate and Iron Mike had, but Marina before Mary Kate moves in to kind of share some other things about season four. I think you know Iron Mike as well. What’s, I mean, does he get you ready to run through walls too? Tell us.

Marina Rabinek (10:24):

Oh no, he’s, I mean, I put it in the ch in the, in the LinkedIn chat like you said, I, I multitask. So yes, he’s bombing. He, yes, he, he’s he’s amazing. Like all the things he does to give back to, to the military community is, is amazing. And I am just, you know, these two, Mary Kate and and Mike have made me want to apply for the program. And so I’m putting my application hopefully, you know, maybe there’s someone on this livestream that might wanna be a recommender, but I’m just,

Mary Kate Soliva (11:02):

And and Mike’s book, you know, I just had, that was something we mentioned in his, in his episode as well. Yeah. Is he, he can’t, he wrote a book like on top of everything else that he does, on top of being the hoop veteran fellowship program, he publishes book Black Veteran Entrepreneur, validate your business model, build your Brand, and Step into Greatness. So again, he’s just vulnerable. He talks about his failures, which I think is so important cuz not everybody does that. And it is open book, but Mike is Yeah. And it’s just incredible.

Scott Luton (11:28):

So one last question and then we’ll get back to season four. Yeah. But you, y’all both have referenced Mary Kate the Hoover, the Hoover Hoover program. Can you just in a nutshell, tell us what that is? Mary Kate?

Mary Kate Soliva (11:38):

Yes. So the Hoover Veteran Fellowship Program is a non-resident program started by former Secretary of State, Dr. Conno, Lisa Bryce. I was part of her inaugural cohort as along with Iron Life. And there were 10 of us total, 10 veterans. So this program is open to veterans and like I said, it’s non-resident and it’s an opportunity for you to amplify issues, policies, the grassroots level that you are passionate about promoting. And, and I just say to just put yourself out there to my list, enlisted brothers and sisters to make sure you apply. Don’t self-select out of this opportunity just cuz you think it’s for officers. It’s not just for officers as much as I love them to, but you know, it is for our veteran community and you all are out there just crushing it. And take this opportunity to have folks like General Mattis, Joan McMaster, Neil Ferguson, Leon, her c l e, all these big names that you see on the TV are now sitting across the table from you talking to you real talk about the issues that you care about. Mm. I mean, you can’t beat this in incredible experience and, and my peers have pushed me to another level.

Scott Luton (12:40):

So y’all check that out. Marina is applying, as she mentioned, folks, you should all get out there and apply and add to your experience. Now. I know we’re just a jampacked episode. So many things to talk about. So go, go, go. Mary <laugh>, Mary Kate, tell us now. So Iron Mike is a big part. Think he was kickoff episode of season four. What else can folks expect? And then we’re gonna talk about a special episode where the two of y’all got together. So Mary Kate, tell us what is to come with season four?

Mary Kate Soliva (13:10):

Oh yeah. So season four, we have some just great episodes teed up with, you know, like Catherine Martinez for example. Just really, you know, student veteran of the year with Student Veterans America. Just the, the caliber of people that I’m finding, you know, like Brian Russell, career Marine, he’s out there helping the next generation through cycling bicycles. Just really incredible, incredible. Um, and you know, David Trenholm, another superstar Bank America, just like out there getting it advice, just giving back so much of his time. But again, all these veterans are continuing, whether they retired and did a full career in their military or whether they got out before retirement, they did not end their service after they hung up their uniform. They’re continuing to serve, got the grassroots level in their communities and they’re just putting themselves, making their vulnerable themselves vulnerable to the issues that they experienced.

Mary Kate Soliva (14:05):

And what I love about Veteran Voices, Scott, where you teed it up, was talking about where they grew up. How often do we really get a chance to amplify like where we came from mm-hmm. <affirmative>. And I think that’s so important as we move forward in life, is to just remember those mentors and those moments, those golden nuggets of wisdom that we learned at such a young age. And you know, what would we tell young Mary Kay, what would young Scott, you know, what would you tell Young Scott now, like 10 year old Scott or Marina telling 15 year old Marina about the life that you’re about to lead. And I think that starting each episode with that is just amazing. Plus we pump everybody up with some motivational quotes.

Scott Luton (14:40):

That’s right. That’s right. Well, you know, this is this, this is what without five year old Scott, stop it. Stop that. Stop that right now.

Mary Kate Soliva (14:48):

Well, you got minis too, Scott. You got around your little minis already

Scott Luton (14:52):

<laugh>. So let’s do this. So clearly folks, a lots in store for season four, this, this has been a project of passion for so many here. Really appreciate Mary Kate’s leadership the last, uh, season and a half I guess we’ll call it. So you could find Veteran voices wherever you get your podcast. Of course, we’re very proud to partner, not just with Mary Kate and Guam Human Rights Initiative, but also with Marina and the Military Women’s Collective. And we’re gonna talk more about their special missions here in a minute. But this was a good, this, this is one of the, one of the highlights I think of season three. I’m gonna pull this little image up here. Was Marina Ick sitting in the chair being a featured guest. A woman’s place is in the military. So talk to us, Mary Kate, let’s start with you Mary Kate and then Marina, I’ll get you to reflect on it. Tell me Mary Kate about your favorite part of this conversation with Marina.

Mary Kate Soliva (15:47):

Oh gosh, can I see that with this episode? I was just so empowered by how vulnerable you were. See I came, marina, you’re sitting right here. So I, you know, just amazed at just how vulnerable you made yourself during that episode. We had so many laughs I heard from another, a listener that they loved your voice impersonations, you know, like you’re, you’re really good at <laugh>.

Scott Luton (16:11):

Oh,

Mary Kate Soliva (16:12):

Changing your voice and you turn on the French accent and you know, marina speaks fluent French, so she just turns it on. And what I just, but then we, you know, we started off fun and light, then we went deep and we went heavy and talking about like real veteran issues that are happening and just what started, what led you to start Military Women’s Collective was some, was a story that I had not heard. And you shared it in the moment, in real time on that episode. And it moved my soul. Like I was just so, just love you so much and just, yeah, just, I mean, I could feel everything. You just poured your heart and soul into that episode and I was so honored that you were willing to share that with me and share that with our listeners and, and at such a moment in time that was not easy to, to dig back up that memory. And you, you did it for the sake of just sharing with everybody in the world about how military, women’s collective, why it’s so important, why it exists. So Scott just loved that. And I, I I won’t do the spoilers cause I want people to go in there. Listen, so I won’t give them too much detail.

Scott Luton (17:12):

Well, I, I appreciate that And folks we got, we’re dropping the link to, to check out that conversation. But Marina, you know, I remember when that came out. The, the comments were effusive as we were, we were sharing that. Cause I think it resonated with so many people. So Marina, you know, looking back now, not just in the episode, but what y’all talked about part of who you are, what really, what, what, what’s something maybe folks should take away or your favorite part from that conversation perhaps?

Marina Rabinek (17:39):

Oh wow. Yeah. My, my favorite part of that conversation was sharing that story. Like she said, I, it was basically the origin story of, of why I wanted to start military women’s collective because I I, I felt like, and I, and I’ve said this and and, and I don’t want anyone to be like offended or anything, but, you know, the military and honestly corporate America were started by white men for white men. And so everyone else that is coming into the military is technically at a, I don’t wanna say at a disadvantage, but they’re a, a minority really. Yeah. And, and so, you know, we really got into why women should be in the military and are a, a great, you know, that it’s, that it’s amazing that we are have been able to serve now since what, June 12th, 1948 Women Veterans Day. So yeah, it’s, it’s, it was such a powerful, like she said, it was so powerful and you know, obviously we had much as a giggles cuz that’s what all her and I do all the time. But, but we really got deep into the origin of, of M W C is, so yeah, that was, that was definitely it.

Scott Luton (18:57):

Well I wanna be very respectful Of course. And I don’t want you to, you know, share what’s on your heart and all, and we’ll talk more about the Milit military women’s collective in a second. But, but you’re right. You know, I think the latest numbers I saw, I think 90% of the military is male. And, you know, I don’t know further breakdowns from that, but I can only imagine what it’s like being the uniform on the other side, so to speak. But I’ll tell you in my experience in the Air Force, don’t, don’t chuckle ba we deal with everything with humor, right?

Scott Luton (19:27):

<laugh>, Sergeant Vicki Vasquez, the pride of, of New York, I think Brooklyn in particular, back in the mid nineties when I was athaw Air Force Base had an impact on me that I’ll never forget. Shaped, shaped who I am. So, and, and she may or may not know that. So I can only imagine the people, Mary Kate and Marina, y’all both impacted whether it was when you were, you know, back on active duty or whether it’s what you’re doing now. But Marina, what, what’s one thing when you think of just kind of what you were talking some of the things that, that y’all have to persevere through and what’s one thing that might surprise some folks about the, the female experience in the military?

Marina Rabinek (20:06):

Ooh, wow, that’s a good question. That we all have a voice. I think a lot of women, no, I don’t wanna, I don’t want to generalize too much, but you know, I I I feel like we need to stand up for ourselves more advocate for ourselves more not only, you know, in the workplace but also medically as well. There. There’s such, there there’s such a huge need for that. Not only in the military but also in the va. I mean there’s, that is, that is definitely something that I am, am wanting to do more advocating for is, is more bills in the Senate and Bills in Congress, you know, working, working with the congress and, you know, congressmen and, and senate and representatives and stuff in here in California to, to make sure that we’re, we’re pushing forward all these, cuz it’s, it’s just different for us, you know. Sure. We don’t have the, the good old boy, you know, group thing that with the women. I mean, I don’t know. It’s just, it’s just a different, it’s different for us getting out. We want different things than, than y’all a lot of times. You know, one

Scott Luton (21:19):

Thing, well I’ll tell you what Mary Kayt, let me get you to chime in and then we’re, we’re gonna move forward. But Marina, one thing I’m certainly hearing is this, you know, I heard a friend of mine Gail put on LinkedIn today that she was paraphrasing a lead singer at a concert, said, and, and said, I’ve got a lot of hope. Cause I see despite the challenging times we’re in, I see a lot better times ahead and, and that’s kind of what I’m hearing from you, marina. We, we’ve had come a long way, right? But we haven’t come all the way and we still, to your point, we still gotta drive a lot more change so that it works for everybody. Mary Kate, what would you add to that? And then of course we’ll point people to the episodes so folks can hear it with all the context. Mary Kate, what would you add though?

Mary Kate Soliva (22:01):

I, I was just thinking back off of what Rena was saying with regards to just knowing that as women in service, that we can step up to also take the load, the load off. I think, and I have just such a, a clear example in my head of, of when this happened, but when I was in selection to hopefully get picked up as a soft soldier, I ended up getting stuck carrying a bucket of sand, right? So like the other guys on my team, I was the only female on my team and the other men on my team were carrying like the logs, the big heavy things. Yeah. And oh, I got stuck with the bucket of sand and I was like, let me help, you know, cuz the bucket of sand wasn’t as painful as what they were carrying. And I could see them getting tired after we were going for this unknown distance.

Mary Kate Soliva (22:45):

And sure enough, like when one of the, the guys after they were getting muscle failure, he’s like, I, you know, I kept offering, let me take some of the load, lemme take some of the load and they wouldn’t let me take it. And finally one of the guys said she can do it if we just show her how. Yeah. And he doesn’t even remember saying that to me. But I literally had told him after we ended up getting selected that I was like, that was such a profound moment because, you know, I, I didn’t know necessarily how to push it in the way that they were doing it, but it’s like watching them do it. I knew I could do it, but I didn’t wanna like elbow my way in there. You know, there was part of me that was stopping myself from just like taking in the backseat. But I think, and it’s important that we do have male allies in service as well. It’s not like we’re saying they’re all bad, but we have male allies as well and, and a brothers to my left or right Beth have definitely mentored and helped me along the way. So I think it’s just important to know that we, we have a seat at the table and to just not be afraid to, to carry that, share that load.

Scott Luton (23:44):

I love that. All right. So I’m really appreciate what y’all are sharing here in, in with a lot of transparency and, and frankness. All right, so both of y’all, it’s a great segue too because what, one of the things I wanna ask you both is, you know, whether you’re a veteran, no matter when you served or if you’ve never served, you know, we need allies there as well. Military, you know, veteran advocates really important. We all have blind spots, right? We all have blind spots and, and there’s plenty. We all don’t know. And what is one, with that said, Marino, I’m circling back to you. What is one issue impacting the veteran community that you think more folks should know about?

Marina Rabinek (24:20):

Oh, yes. So it’s actually one of the, the main things that I focus on with military women’s collective and that, uh, food insecurity and homelessness in the veteran community. And even more, you know, spotlighted is the women veteran community, especially here in California. I mean the bigger states like California, Texas, Florida, it’s, it’s a, it’s a big problem. And, you know, I’m, I’m partnering with other nonprofits here in my area in southern California to try and, and help remedy, you know, and, and fight homelessness and, and, and hunger. Hmm.

Scott Luton (25:01):

You know, we did a point in time survey a couple years back, so Atlanta, here in Atlanta, wonderful veteran, they call it a club. They don’t want your money. It’s not a, it’s not a society, it’s not a, it is there to help veterans network and, and find ways to serve and stuff like that. And we did, we volunteered for this point in time and, and uh, middle of night was our shift, marina and Mary Kate, and, and throughout Atlanta, I think we did like the 11:00 AM to 3:00 AM shift. And we’d go out on the streets, our group and we’d meet folks living on the streets and we’d try to gather information which would all pull back up into this, this national study. So, so we can get a better, more accurate so the powers a be can get a better, more accurate view of the homeless, uh, challenge that we all have that Marina you’re speaking to.

Scott Luton (25:49):

Yep. I’m telling you, if you want an experience that will change your life and your, especially your misperception, I had ’em about what makes up our homeless population. Find Google point in time audit, point in time survey and volunteer to do that. So Mary Kay, get you to chime in here. Marina is on a mission, whether it’s home, homelessness, food insecurity, you know, that’s impacting our veteran community and probably some other plenty of other, you know, mentorships, some other things. What do you think, Mary Kate, what’s one issue beyond that perhaps that folks should know about? So that’s, that’s impacting the veteran community.

Mary Kate Soliva (26:24):

Now, the sense of purpose for veterans in that transition piece is something that I just think collectively is when we help service members with the transition. I also think we’re sort of indirectly helping them tackle the homelessness, the veteran suicide and the other things that are impacting veterans in a negative way. Uh, because that transition piece is so important in them being able to find their sense of purpose, finding their why, finding them employment. And, and there’s still very much that stigma that still surrounds veterans when it comes to entering the workplace and what they offer to, to the, to the workforce. And they do at hold a lot of value. But not every service member has a college degree. Not every service member has the certifications. And in some of these job announcements I see that they want unicorns of, you know, minimum of this many years of experience.

Mary Kate Soliva (27:16):

And we have, we have more service members now transitioning out before retirement. So they’re, they don’t have the 10 to 20 years of experience, but they did raise their right hand to serve. And I think it’s just so important, not just for them, but even the spouses, the military spouse and military child to just be there for the entire military family as they’re transitioning into this space. And again, just that sense of purpose. I mean, to not be able to put food on the table for your family, for something that was secure cuz the military took care of that, the military took care of our moves, they took care of so much for us, and we hang up that uniform, we can definitely feel lost. So yeah, again, I think it’s just something that we, we just need to support more in the leadership that’s still in the military needs to be able to step it up and support. I just saw the Navy came out with a new policy on skill bridge. I mean it’s just, you know, and, and some would argue <laugh> enough for the better.

Marina Rabinek (28:09):

I got, I got nothing. I’m not even gonna, I’m not even gonna comment all that.

Mary Kate Soliva (28:14):

But with regards to the transition to just know that, to look at the folks who have already transitioned out, don’t just take your only advice from those still serving and those still serving the senior leaders need to know that this is such a critical point for service members as they enter in and become veteran. That D two 14 in hand, we gotta be there to support.

Marina Rabinek (28:33):

Oh my gosh, you, you, exactly. And that honestly, what you said is like the second half of M W C mm-hmm. <affirmative>, it’s mentorship, it’s empowerment, it’s networking, it’s making sure that our veterans, and yes, I know it says military, women’s collective, but I’m, I’m gonna help everyone that I can. You know, I I I don’t want, and I know Mary Kay feels the same way, we don’t wanna lose any more of our brothers and sisters. Right. And Scott, I know you feel that way too. You know, we don’t wanna lose any more of our brothers and sisters. We don’t want any more people ending up, you know, living in their cars or on the streets. It’s, we, we ha we can do everyone we can do better, can do something. We can all do more. Yeah. And that is what I think that’s, you know, Mary Kate, that’s our purpose right?

Marina Rabinek (29:22):

Is to be of service to other people, especially those in the, in the military community to, to make sure that, that they transition out of the military and find purpose and, and a meaningful career That Right. That makes sense to them. And find volunteer opportunities where they can give back and pay it forward. You know, the way like I pay it forward to, to Mary Kay, Mary Kay pays it forward to Scott. Scott pays it forward to whoever, you know, like it just keeps going. It’s a, it’s a never ending. It’s a legacy. That’s what I’m trying to build and I know she’s too.

Scott Luton (30:01):

Love that. Love that. Okay. I want, so Gloria Mar is ready to go sign her up. Marina, I’m not sure if I can be of any help, but I’m in southern California, St. Pedro and I work at Los Angeles Space Force Base. That’s cool. Let’s connect Gloria Mar. Wonderful. And Roomi, I think I got that right. I think I got it wrong. My apologies wants to apply for the Hoover program as well. So maybe we can drop a link to that and we’ll get them signed up as well, Tess. All right. So Mary, Kate and Marina, thank y’all both for sharing so much, so much more to what we owe our veterans than just healthcare or just a, a good job. There’s so much more to the equation and their families

Mary Kate Soliva (30:41):

Upskilling. Yeah, just the upskilling piece is so important. Yeah. You know, I just saw Laurie Martin has her pmp, you know, that’s what do we do? Just helping folks, you know, how ironic, uh, or care, the Project Management Institute, but we’re just really helping the upskilling piece. And that’s why I just keep saying that driving factor is so much more than just getting these veterans employment. It is helping them have a sense of purpose again. And that’s why even before they transition, I’m such a big proponent of volunteer work. That’s how I met Marina. We were still on active duty and we both started volunteering countless hours of volunteer work, but it helped us with the upskilling from doing something completely different, pivoting from what we were doing, what the military trainers do. And it helped us find a voice. Somebody just told me yesterday about how I have a very solid elevator pitch. They’re like, Rick, your elevator pitch is really good. And I’ve like, I’ve been saying that pitch over and over and now granite refine that thing. But it just, it’s so important to, to just say your name out loud, say who you are, what you stand for, and then people who you’ve never even met will continue to advocate for you and send you all those opportunities your way.

Scott Luton (31:46):

I love it. So raise your hand and volunteer to our listeners out there. It pays off. It pays off. Okay. And if you’re looking for great places to volunteer, you can check out, um, marina and Mary Kate’s respective organization. So more on that in second. I promise. I’m alright. I wanna shift gears cause it is, let’s see, March, we celebrate women and women’s history and their contributions all year long. But I, I really like March, how it’s a targeted, you know, you, you can put a little extra focus on on what we all really gotta do and gotta celebrate. So as I segue into this, I wanna bring up this little image here. These are my daughters. It’s why I exist and jump outta bed every day. But we published a, with that settling to newsletter last Saturday focused on National Women’s History Month. It’s, it’s genesis, some of our programming related to folks breaking barriers and, and whatnot.

Scott Luton (32:37):

So y’all check that out that we’re gonna drop link to to that in the chat. But National Women’s History Month means a lot of different things, a lot of different folks. But what at its core may be undeniable inarguable are those folks like Sergeant Vasquez I just mentioned on the, on the front end as women that inspire others that serve, that bust down those barriers that impact so many. We probably, all three of us have a long, long list. But Mary Kate, circling back with you, what is, what is one or two women that really profoundly shaped your journey? Still

Mary Kate Soliva (33:08):

Mine

Scott Luton (33:11):

Marina says Don’t still hurts <laugh>.

Mary Kate Soliva (33:14):

Oh gosh. And, and is just in the transition space, Scott? Or

Scott Luton (33:18):

Well, your pick your pick.

Mary Kate Soliva (33:20):

Oh gosh. Well Marina definitely for the, the transition space. And, and, and I just know this because I can’t count how many times that I’ve picked up the phone and actually just, just cry <laugh> to Marina. You know, I think there’s like this exterior of, of toughness and we’ve got it figured out. But just being able to find somebody else who understands where you’re coming from, it’s just so important to be able to have that touchpoint of your tight circle of those, whether they’re veterans or not. So definitely the transition space Marina, you know, and I met her through, through Ryan Arrington and through, you know, like even folks like Herb Thompson, I was like, Annie Brock, oh my gosh, she’s gonna have me name marvelous. But you know, just early on in my career, I, I got a lot of inspiration from like my dad who served granted Hughes Navy, but <laugh> makes the December a game’s very interesting football game.

Mary Kate Soliva (34:17):

Very interesting. But yeah, I, him and seeing the fellowship of, of his friends growing up was something that really inspired me. And I continued to like touchpoint. My uncle was career air. Um, so coming from a, a family and I, and I got actually in the walls in, in front of me. Like my, my great-grandfather’s navy certificate when he, he crossed the line, you know, on his ship. And it’s just something that is, is a legacy for me. My grandfather’s sure of Navy. And so I think just having the mentorship of just by family that I know is not gonna go anywhere has been, has been inspiring. And surprisingly the toughest mentors I’ve had in service were actually women. And they were harder on me <laugh> than any male leader that I ever, but it was something that really just helped me push me to the, the next level. So. Yeah.

Scott Luton (35:06):

Well, I appreciate that. And then we should the, the obligatory disclaimer on the front end, anytime you ask these kind of questions, just look, there’s thousands of people that we wanna recognize. But yeah, Colin, just a couple of names. We won’t leave anyone off. So Mary Kay, we all have been there with that struggle. Cause it’s like, it’s like thanking people in front of others. You don’t name names cause you leave people. Oh

Mary Kate Soliva (35:27):

Gosh, I’m gonna leave somebody out. And I and I, I sort of did that plug just knowing that those are ones that Marina’s probably gonna name too, but you know, just a jab at her. So I I, yeah, I can’t wait to hear Reina’s list cuz I’m sure it’s an extension of mine.

Scott Luton (35:40):

So Marina pressure’s on who’s a couple folks you’d love to, to call out.

Marina Rabinek (35:44):

Well, of course the way that the Mary Kate mentioned me, I’m gonna mention her because she is an inspiration to me. Like every time I I see her, she’s, she’s doing something amazing for, for the, the military and veteran community. With that, I would have to add all the other ladies that are part of our, um, our crew. Yes, we are Wonder Women. That’s our friends. Cindy Palmer, Martha Foss, summer McAfee, Leslie Coffee. Come I forgetting Cindy. Did I say Cindy Palmer? We’re literally

Mary Kate Soliva (36:21):

In a chat group. Scott. Like, we literally talk like almost every day. He’s like, no way to just narrow one. Like you just say collectively the Wonder Woman. I always think we

Marina Rabinek (36:30):

Norris. I mean

Mary Kate Soliva (36:33):

I could see we joke about that. I was like, I could totally see us being like in the Golden Girls Room. Wonder what?

Marina Rabinek (36:38):

Yeah, really like all of us with our bor

Mary Kate Soliva (36:40):

Personalities, different branches of service and we just get along so well.

Marina Rabinek (36:45):

Military, spouses, non-military, I mean, but we’re all connected because we all wanna give back to, to this community, you know, and I mean of course I would say somebody like Rbj or Rbj rbg, you know, with Bader Ginsburg, I mean amazing.

Mary Kate Soliva (37:05):

Scott <laugh>.

Scott Luton (37:08):

I think speaking of rbg, there’s several outstanding documentaries on Netflix and Hulu and elsewhere. And if you hadn’t checked that out, you must it is, it should be required consumption. But Marina who, who else? I don’t wanna short circuit your list. Oh

Marina Rabinek (37:24):

Gosh.

Scott Luton (37:25):

And hey, can I get an invitation to be part of the, was it the Wonder, wonder Women

Marina Rabinek (37:29):

Chip

Mary Kate Soliva (37:30):

Wonder

Scott Luton (37:31):

Honor honorary

Marina Rabinek (37:32):

Max Outfit? No, I’m just kidding. I

Mary Kate Soliva (37:34):

Dunno. Scott can keep up with all the memes we got going on in there

Marina Rabinek (37:37):

For real. Right? It’s ridiculous.

Mary Kate Soliva (37:39):

The meme game Strong Scott

Scott Luton (37:42):

<laugh>. So, gosh,

Marina Rabinek (37:43):

I mean there there’s just so many, there’s so many women out there. I mean Mary Kate mentioned Annie from from Leader Transition Institute. I mean all the amazing ladies that work at the Commit Foundation, all the wonderful women that I work with also at Four Block. I mean you have some just mind bogglingly amazing people on, on LinkedIn that, I mean there’s just, I I don’t even know how to, how to say all the different names cuz there’s like thousands. Yes. You know, I mean

Scott Luton (38:20):

Well we did.

Mary Kate Soliva (38:20):

That’s great. I

Scott Luton (38:22):

Agree. So may I agree to you Mary Kate and Marina, thank y’all for, for sharing because a as we know, you know, that’s why it’s good to have this month, right? While we celebrate these folks that you mentioned and many others throughout history and what they do and what they’ve had to fight against, right. All year long man to, to take a moment when it’s really, you know, des a designated month. I, I think I’ve always thought that it, it, it prompts many myself included to do little extra research, especially if you create content around those focus areas, you know, uh, uh, so I think that there’s a lot of value there. So Marina, Mary, Kate, thank you for sharing to you both. Now we’re gonna get into one of my favorite parts. Cause as I share on the front end, we’re big fans of what both of y’all are doing. All the good you’re doing for others in our veteran community and elsewhere. And I wanna start with Marina, the Military Women’s Collective. And I’ve got, I think I, I stole this graphic from y’all’s website here. So tell us what, what’s at the core of what you do and how can folks support

Marina Rabinek (39:26):

What is at the core of what we do? Well, it’s two-fold. The core of what we do is to, to assist active duty women transitioning out of the military, uh, to make sure that, you know, they don’t end up being one of the homeless or food insecure women veterans that I’m trying to help on the, on the other side because that’s, it’s just, it’s just so important to make sure that, that people, you know, understand that there’s so many different avenues when you’re getting out of the military. You don’t have to, everybody doesn’t have to do, you know, program management or <laugh> or whatever it is. You know, it, it’s, you know, there are, there’s so many different Yeah, I know your picture, but, but you know what I’m saying, like, I mean, I guess I was probably not the one I should’ve said, but, but you know, a lot of people think that they have to stay with the exact MOS or N c or afsc af No, I forgot

Scott Luton (40:26):

Afs C that’s right. Air,

Marina Rabinek (40:27):

I get

Scott Luton (40:27):

It. Right. Air Force Specialty Code. That’s right. There

Marina Rabinek (40:30):

You go. Any, any of those you don’t have to stay with that you can chi right. And, and do whatever’s in your heart. You know, like I, what I do feeds my soul. And, and I am so blessed by the fact that I get to do this every day work with, you know, to help make sure people are successful when they get out of the military. And if they have fallen on hard times, I’m also there to assist them with, you know, food and, and, and hygiene products. Yes, of course. We’re always wanting to accept donations because we, there’s so many more things I want to do with with military women’s collective, like do retreats and things like that for, for veteran women. So yes, there’s just the website. Check it out if you have questions, you know, message us on the chat and somebody will get with you.

Scott Luton (41:30):

Wonderful military women’s collective.org. I appreciate you sharing it. I know it sounds you’re moving the needle in a variety of ways and folks can go there to learn more and volunteer, donate, learn more, you name it. Absolutely. Okay. Thank you Marina. And, and, and I appreciate by the way, what you’re doing, um, in general outside of that for our veteran community and of course Veteran Voices. So it’s been neat to see you and Mary Kate really lift up these important interviews and conversations. Mary Kate, let’s talk about the Guam Human Rights Initiative. I’ve really enjoyed, you know, I’ve kind of, I’ve enjoyed our, of our conversations behind, you know, kind of private conversations as you’ve kind of, you and your, your colleague have formed it and built it. And I’ve seen the passion come out and you’re, as you talk about it, so, so please share with the rest of, of, of our community here, what you’re doing with Guam Human Rights Initiative and how folks can can play a part.

Mary Kate Soliva (42:29):

Yes, Scott, you know, I was like, what’s the longest name that we could possibly pick for

Scott Luton (42:33):

<laugh>

Mary Kate Soliva (42:34):

So that everybody stumbles on it when they try to say it <laugh> it’s mine nose are really collective. That’s the longest sperm. Now we can, I had to say that I know we’re talking about Mil, you know, women’s History Month and I was shouting out some of the, you know, male mentors too. But it’s because I’ve had so many male allies as well as as women allies or male allies as well as women mentors in this space of veterans, spouses in this community that have really helped support me. And again, shout out to Liquid cause he’s listening out. Shout him out big. No-no. But the Guam Human Rights Initiative co-founded Waste, my dearest friend Erica Anderson who’s now Dr. Erica Anderson and is a collaborative research organization where we realized that speaking with stakeholders at the grassroots, grassroots level in Guam and Micronesia, that they were lacking significant data to address human rights issues.

Mary Kate Soliva (43:24):

So we decided that with the Guam Human Rights Initiative, that we were gonna empower the graduate level students, the next generation to tackle and address some of these human rights issues impacting Guam and the region through research. So we ended up posting a conference last year that w actually was attended by the Governor wom, our first female governor, Lule Gro. And we also had the former Attorney General Alicia tko, who’s a big mentor of ours as Wilson new board member. We had, you know, the speaker of the legislature, Dr. N Enrique, vice, vice Provost of University of Guam attend former congressman. And Dr. Cona Rice also provided prerecorded video for the conference last year on human trafficking in Guam in the region. So I know people, many people think that because I’m passionate about addressing and addressing human trafficking, specifically sex trafficking, it’s not just the only thing that’s impacting Guam in the region.

Mary Kate Soliva (44:20):

So a lot of times Guam is left off the map, left off out of conversations cuz we’re a US territory, not a state. So being able to amplify chorals and you may have seen, you know, on, on a, celebrating a Women’s Day, international Women’s Day that I was celebrating ul more women, cuz many don’t even know that we exist. Mm-hmm So here you go. If you’ve never met one here I am. But just being able to have that legacy of, of women, strong women who have come before me. So inspiring and the fact that, you know, my co-founder we’re both women, both the graduates of the University of Guam and we’re just making things happen. So we’re just really encourage, you know, if you want to support us, we want, we’re playing, we’re hosting annual conferences to bring stakeholders and leaders together to talk about these issues. And each year is a different topic to help support and continue the conversation going. And then again, we’re looking to, to amplify to have more training, more awareness, outreach, speaking engagements. Not just in Guam in the region, but also here in the US mainland and research opportunities for our youth.

Scott Luton (45:25):

Love that. Folks. We’ve dropped a link to the website there, guam hri.org and that image, man, when I landed on this earlier, it just, just the imagery you’ve gotten in, in a variety of pictures on the site.

Marina Rabinek (45:41):

So relaxing.

Scott Luton (45:42):

Yes. No kidding.

Marina Rabinek (45:43):

Have you been to Guam stunt cuz I have and it is gorgeous.

Scott Luton (45:46):

I have not been to Guam yet, marina, but you’ve been

Marina Rabinek (45:50):

I have, yeah, I, i I zip lined at the, I mean I know Mary Kate’s gonna know exactly what I’m talking about at the, at the Hilton in Timon Bay. There’re flying, you can go straight through all the trees, right to the, to the water. You gotta

Mary Kate Soliva (46:03):

Get you out there. Scott Rena’s been, let’s do it over the place. Let, but even if you go on that website, like on our, our gallery has like all the photo photos from our conference and just some of the outreach work that we’ve been doing as well. What it really is to help, cuz what does everybody lacking is, is research. And, and you know, grants want research, local leaders want research to help with their decision making process. And so a lot of times when it comes to scholarly work on Guam, it’s just very limited. So just being able to, to support us, to support Guam and Micronesia is just really incredible. So grateful Scott, thank you.

Scott Luton (46:39):

Well, I’d love to visit Guam, but make no mistake about it. Me and scholarly work do not, we’ll never be confused. So I’m happy to help support and love the visit, but, but most kidding aside, most importantly, I really admire what y’all both are doing. You know, talk, talking to our team, we, we meet every Friday at 10:00 AM and I, I gotta go back and find someone on season two told me and it really shame on me cuz I’d never really thought about what you shared. I think Mary Kay, that man you hang up the uniform, but so many veterans, they keep on serving. They just keep on serving. It just looks different, right? And, and yes and admissions different and it’s so very true. And both y’all epitomize that. So I appreciate what y’all do. Folks make sure at a, at a, at a bare bones minimum, make sure you connect with Marina and Mary Kate on LinkedIn, but check out their sites, see how y’all can get involved and support from afar or, or like Lomar said right there, you know, same coast, maybe not. How far away are you? Do you think you’re from San, San Pedro Marina? If you had just a guess.

Marina Rabinek (47:42):

Yes,

Scott Luton (47:42):

Couple hours. I, I

Marina Rabinek (47:43):

Don’t even know where, I’m not natively from California.

Scott Luton (47:46):

Oh okay. Something like that. What’s, how about that? It’s small

Mary Kate Soliva (47:49):

State, right? <laugh>

Marina Rabinek (47:51):

State. I dunno. <laugh>

Scott Luton (47:55):

Maybe We’ll see if Catherine,

Marina Rabinek (47:57):

Lemme look it up. Let know, you know how I do, right?

Scott Luton (48:00):

All right, so

Mary Kate Soliva (48:01):

I’m, I’m in the DC area so I know it’s like the Guam Huon rights initiative but that’s what we love about what we’re doing is we’re collaborating with other scholars and other researchers, data scientists from other parts of the world too. So really just a collective to just get Guam on the map, get Chimor is a seat at the table and just continue to have these conversations to try to address these issues at the grassroots level. So I’m always open to collaborations. You can know nothing about Guam, you couldn’t have never been there, but I would love to collaborate, see, you know, see how we can support one another.

Scott Luton (48:32):

Love that. Alright Marina,

Marina Rabinek (48:35):

I think Laura Mar is right, it’s about two hours. It’s, it’s by and Long Beach and like the USS Iowa kind of area. So yeah, it’s

Scott Luton (48:45):

To our students at home, if you have any multiple choice tests or any algebra tests, no tests and you have no clue what the answer’s gonna be, go with two hours cause that is just about the universal answer to everything. Um, alright, so Marina and Mary Kate. And by the way, thanks everyone for showing up. Big thanks Amanda and C Sure. A t And we had a little fun earlier with the Wonder Women. I I can just picture the hall of justice. Y’all might have and, and meet at and stuff. Oh we need

Mary Kate Soliva (49:27):

The Bengal bracelets. But yes, we’re both connected. This I think, Scott, we told you that on a previous episode that Marin and I are, our top Gallup strength and we are transitioning is, is connectedness and just that sense of feeling that we are all connected in one way or another. So whether it’s paying it forward or reaching back and pulling others ahead that you know, it’s just, it it interwoven and how small this world is when you start to really dig deep into how you know people are

Scott Luton (49:50):

Exactly so true. I completely agree with you and, and the world, despite how large and vast it is, it’s a tiny place. And there’s a, there’s a um, I think it’s called the pale blue dot. It’s a famous image of one of the Voyager spacecraft when it’s billions of miles away and, and it takes a reverse image of the Milky Way mm-hmm <affirmative> and it’s, and and all of this vast expanse, this tiny little.is earth. And man, if that doesn’t make you feel incredibly small and make you think how small the world is and I’m not sure you better check your pulse, but, alright, so we dropped the LinkedIn for both Marina and Mary Kate, but let’s give a chance a marina, how can folk, what’s the easiest, best way for folks to connect with you?

Marina Rabinek (50:34):

Oof with me. I would say LinkedIn or when you get on the website, drop a chat and myself or somebody on my team will, will chat with you on there.

Scott Luton (50:44):

Excellent, excellent. You got a great board. I I saw your, some of those profiles, man you’re building quite, quite an organization over there and Mary Kate you mentioned beyond your colleague’s name, the doc doctor Erica

Mary Kate Soliva (50:55):

Anderson.

Scott Luton (50:56):

Yes. Dr. Erica Anderson. And you’re building out an incredible board as well. How can folks connect with you? Mary Kate?

Mary Kate Soliva (51:02):

Yes. So definitely on LinkedIn or you can connect if you write us at uh, mks o l iva guam.org or write on our website as well. You can fill out the contact over more information and want either I, Erica or I will write you directly. So awesome. Easy peasy.

Marina Rabinek (51:22):

I didn’t get my email address cuz it’s like as long as the screen is wide I

Mary Kate Soliva (51:26):

Know’s gonna name all the letters. Mk. So call me, try out

Marina Rabinek (51:30):

<laugh>. I wish I could have done like mwc.org but it was not available so

Scott Luton (51:34):

Well hey it connect on the site chat, LinkedIn, you name it. And if you have any problems connecting with Mary Kate Marina, reach out to us. We’ll make sure the connection happens. But folks, as we start to wrap, big thanks to both Marina Raddick, thank you so much for joining today. Thank you. And you bet, hope you feel better. I’m not sure if y’all, so here in the States is Pollen, so I’m, I think I’m an OC two lower than I typically am cause Pollen season is hit early, so I hope you continue to feel better. Otherwise we can do like a, a duet song, you know, like from the fifties. Cause our, our voices sound so much better

Marina Rabinek (52:09):

Right now. I think you and I have the same Octa level because yeah, I, I was last, like, last on Saturday. I just started getting, I don’t know, today is like one of the best days out of that whole, are we gonna start

Mary Kate Soliva (52:21):

Harmonizing right now? I feel like

Scott Luton (52:23):

Yes. No, we’ll save, we wanna, we wanna protect the audience but I hope you feel better, marina and Mary Kate, always a pleasure. Thanks for doing what you do and being a part of the conversation here today.

Mary Kate Soliva (52:35):

Thank you so much Scott. I, you know, if our listeners don’t know Veteran Voices started with you Scott, so just the fact of what you created and it is just made it easy peasy for me to keep, keep Sky you know beyond the sky is the limit, but just continuing and this opportunity, thank you so much for having me. And again, you know, just to be able to, I, I have to leave everybody with the one thing that Mike Steadman said to me recently, and with that episode two is when he started in the space as a entrepreneur in the nonprofit space, he even told me that he wasn’t looking to engage the veteran community, but it was the veteran community that really were like the first ones that were supporting him and the first ones that were donating and lending a helping hand. And so to, even if you’re not that place yet where you feel like you identify as a veteran, you may not identify as veteran, but the veteran network is so powerful. It is so strong and is endless. And so just knowing that you are not alone and there are people who have already created the wheel and you can just pivot a little bit, left a little bit, right, and create something new and beautiful, wonderful. And you’ve got your veteran network there to help you. So,

Scott Luton (53:44):

Amen.

Marina Rabinek (53:45):

And I have to shout out Scott and Amanda and Catherine, you know that those awesome ladies are behind the scenes right now, but veteran voices and supply chain now, y’all do so much for, for the military and the, you know, the supply chain community and I’m just really honored and thankful to be, you know, partnered and associated in collaborating with you.

Scott Luton (54:09):

Well, yes, and vice versa, thank you to you both and you know, we all know and we’ll wrap here and thanks everybody to join us. We’ve got such a debt to, to pay back and lift, lift folks up, help folks along the way. We’ve all could probably talk for hours about if it’s not, you know, different elements of our journey. The folks we know, good things and bad things and manage it brings clarity to what we’ve gotta do, right? And, and, and what we’re called to do and what we owe to be done. So anyway, thank you Marina. Thank you Mary Kate. Good. Thanks everybody to join us here today. Folks, do what, jump in, jump into this mission on, on some level. And if it’s not with the folks here, find a way to give back and help out. Cause there’s lots of need out there and it’s about taking action, these not words. On that note, on behalf of our entire team here at Supply Chain now, Scott Loot challenge you to do good, give forward, and to be the change. We’ll see you next time, right back here on Supply Chain now and Better voices. Thanks everybody.