As a little girl on Halloween, Regina Reyes used to don a soldier uniform almost every year to “trick-or-treat.” Now she wears a slightly bigger version just as proudly, but for a vastly different purpose. As a captain in the United States Air Force Reserve, her uniform is one of many symbols of her service, and most recently, a four-month deployment to Southwest Asia.

In addition to her part in the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing, Reyes serves as the assistant director of administration for the Department of Public Safety and Security at Saint Joseph's.  She spends her spare time in the States as a wife and a mother of her four-year old son.

During her tour of duty, which began in October 2009, Reyes spent six days each week serving as the Section Commander for the Wing Staff.  Similar to some of her responsibilities at SJU, which include assigning badges and administrative management, she handled personnel actions, evaluations and decorations for more than 100 Airmen at any given time.  By the end of her tour, Reyes had touched the lives of more than 10,000 service men and women.

“In my short time during deployment, I met and worked with some incredible people, across all branches of the military, from not only the U.S. but also Great Britain and Australia,” says Reyes. “There’s a strong camaraderie that’s formed when people come together and focus their energy toward a shared objective — working together to accomplish the missions in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Horn of Africa.  We have had some great successes because of the collaboration.”

Reyes’ tour marks her first deployment in her 10-year career with the Air Force, part of which was spent as an Air Force ROTC instructor at Saint Joseph's — a connection that continues even overseas.

“In the past four months, I ran into people I had worked and trained with throughout my Air Force career,” says Reyes.  “I even connected with two former cadets, now Lieutenants, from the Air Force ROTC program here at St. Joe's.”

On her “off-duty” days, Reyes immersed herself in the new, foreign environment of the Middle East.

“It was pretty eye-opening for me to experience such a different culture,” says Reyes.  “I was able to travel off the base a few times and go to the shopping district. There we could buy hand-made clothing, gold, pearls, spices and hand-carved woodcrafts.  We had to learn how to haggle, but each trip was full of surprises.  Even driving off of the base was an adventure—and I thought Philly drivers were bad!”

Though she has many fond memories of her tour, the harsh, real reminders of the global war against terrorism were ever-present.   Too often, Reyes and her fellow comrades took time out of their normal routine to perform a final salute to Fallen Warriors as they returned home for the last time on one of her Wing’s planes.

“Unfortunately, it was an almost daily occurrence that a Fallen Warrior ceremony would take place,” says Reyes.  “I didn't know who they were or how they died; I just knew they had made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.  Though we could never fully thank them for their sacrifice, I hope they somehow felt the strong sense of gratitude.”

Reyes says that it was both an honor and a privilege to serve her country. She is thankful for the opportunity, and also the support of her family, friends and coworkers.

“I am appreciative of John Henfey and the rest of the Public Safety staff who not only picked up my workload while I was gone, but who kept my spirits up with e-mail, phone calls and care packages,” says Reyes. “I know it’s been hard on both my family and on the people I work with here in the Department of Public Safety. I am truly grateful for their support.”

Reyes continues her Reserve duty with the 439th Airlift Wing out of Chicopee, Mass.

--Brooke Neifert