I always thought I would be a doctor. I was a bookworm as a little girl. My mom tells the story where she would give me the vacuum and I was supposed to be vacuuming my room, and I would turn the vacuum on and I would leave it running and I would be in my room reading.

There was this summer camp that was a little bit military-esque — run by the state police. You learned how to march and did those sorts of things. I liked that military environment and structure. Maybe it was because I had an Italian Catholic mom who was also very structured.

There was a guidance counselor at high school who thought that maybe the military academies would be a good fit for me. Straight-A student and everything. I went to a summer program here at the Coast Guard Academy — you get a week’s taste of what academy life is like. Again, really loved it.

I ultimately decided more doors were open for women in the Coast Guard at that time. When I came in to the Coast Guard Academy, I think it was somewhere between 10 percent and 15 percent women. Not a lot, but you'd walk around campus and you would see women. When I came to the summer program, there were women cadre, and when you looked at what were women doing in the Coast Guard, there were no restrictions for what women could do.

I didn't grow up on the water. My family didn't have boats. So certainly being on a ship was a new experience for me. Your first summer at the academy, you spend a week on board the Eagle, and then the next summer you spend five or six weeks on board.

When I graduated I went to a 270 — a medium endurance cutter, 270 feet. While I was on board, Sept. 11th happened. We transited to New York Harbor. Our command was working with the other Coast Guard assets basically securing the harbor. A pretty formative moment very early on in my career.

I did grad school and then went on board a 210-foot cutter. All-male crew. Did that for three years. I wasn't really sure where my career was going to take me. I came back to the academy and I taught. I really thought it would be cool, teaching, being able to inspire that next generation.

There was a female officer, Capt. Andrea Marshall, who had been the XO on board the Eagle, and she was now at the academy. She said, "You should think about getting underway on the Eagle during the summers.” I had not given any thought to Eagle, but I got underway on Eagle during three summers.

When it was time for my assignment at the Coast Guard Academy to end, I hadn't been sure that I necessarily wanted to go back afloat. But experiencing Eagle, I felt really welcome. I was selected to be the next executive officer, and I absolutely loved my tour. You're standing on the deck of Eagle and you're talking about the sails and you're talking about the wind — it gives me chills. After that it's like, “I would love to be the commanding officer of Eagle.” Eagle is a special ship. I wish I had something more eloquent to say, but it's when you look up at her and the engine's off and she's just sailing and it's all hands-on deck — once you get everything in place, and then you sit back, it's a really neat thing to experience.

She's a really special ship and when you think about the Coast Guard has been operating her since 1946. Coast Guard Officers have been on board learning about teamwork and perseverance, and how to step outside of your comfort zone and be cold, wet, and tired. I think that helps the Coast Guard officers down the line, that shared experience of being on board. I think we have an incredible opportunity to get the cadets excited about the Coast Guard and what we do for this nation. It’s just what do we do and what's the history of the Coast Guard and the maritime service that we do.

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