My promotion to Major was made effective on New Years Day; exactly six years since my promotion to Captain and just under 9 1/2 years from the time I was commissioned in the summer of 2001. With the help of family friends who work at Fort Carson, my mom was able to throw together a promotion ceremony for me. This morning, over 50 of our closest friends as well as my family members were there to witness it. It was a beautiful ceremony.
After my parents, hubby, and daughter pinned on my new rank, I was asked to give my remarks. I talked about how thankful I am to God, who has blessed me so abundantly and for placing me in a position to serve our Nation and its people in a job that I absolutely love. I talked about how thankful I am to all of the NCOs and Soldiers who made me shine every day with their hard work, professional competence and selflessness. I talked about how grateful I feel to have been groomed by some of the best leaders (Commissioned Officers) in the Army. And I expressed how, most of all, I was thankful to my family--my parents, brother, sister, husband and daughter--whose love, guidance and support I could not have been without.
It's because of all of you that I have made it this far. From the bottom of my heart--thank you! Well, here's to another couple of years until I take another step up the ladder. But how cool is it that I'm just about halfway done with my Army career? Too cool.
Throughout my career thus far, people have always had a difficult time pronouncing my unusual last names. My maiden name was "Ioapo" (pronounced "e-yo-ah-po"). So instead of saying my last name, most folks used to call me "Lieutenant I" or "Captain I". When I got married, my name changed to another hard, Samoan last name, "A'etonu" (pronounced "ah-eh-tow-new"), which folks also had a difficult time pronouncing. So, for the last few years, I've always been called "Captain A". So effective today, it's "Major A". Yikes, that'll take some time to get used to.
I'll leave you guys with a picture of my baby girl and I. She'd worn the ACU outfit that one of our aunts bought for her. It says "Army Princess" on it. That, she truly is.
Promotions are great. They're awesome! But, by far, one of my greatest achievements, aside from marrying my husband, was having this beautiful little girl. I am truly blessed.
Whew! This will be the last big family event here in Colorado Springs. As a matter of fact, we have just under a week before we head out to Germany. Oh my!
