Amanda Demond, U.S. Army

Serving in the U.S. Armed Forces is in Amanda Demond’s DNA. After all, she comes from a military family. “I have a few uncles that served, and my brother and sister served as well,” she says. And it was that family influence that also helped her pick the Army as her choice of service branches. “I originally wanted to go into the Navy, but my brother, being an Army guy himself, took me to an Army recruiter. That’s where I enlisted,” says Demond.

Demond, who enrolled in the service in July 2012, was still thinking of transferring to the Navy after serving some time in the Army, but her plans changed after she experienced an injury.

“While in the Army, I worked with equipment used in concrete and asphalt production and paving. One day, I injured myself and, as a result, moved into the Human Resources department,” she says. The wound, which didn’t heal properly, would eventually force Demond to be discharged after three and a half years. While some would say her time in the military was cut short, Demond says it was unforgettable and that she learned a lot.

“One of the most interesting experiences of serving in the Army was that I got to live and see Hawaii,” she says. “The experience also gave me the leadership training I needed to be able to lead my current department at AMR in a successful manner. My team provides dispatch services to not only St Louis, Missouri, but also to parts of Illinois, Iowa, Ohio and Kentucky.”

Rank Achieved
Private First Class

What do You Miss About the Military?
The bonds and friendships created with other soldiers in my platoon.

What do you do for AMR?
I oversee my operation’s communications department. Among my duties, I prepare staff reports, assist call staff and strategize procedures on maximizing my team's productivity to meet customer demands, ultimately leading to more positive customer relations.