Meet the Members Monday- Heather K

Hi, my name is Heather Kearney, and my husband is Kevin Kearney, an Army MS1. I grew up in Neptune, NJ, aka the Jersey Shore. No, it is nothing like the show. My husband grew up in Breezy Point, NY. We met in 1992 in NY through a mutual friend. We dated throughout the remainder of high school, so yes, we are high school sweethearts. I always said that we set ourselves up for military life because we started our relationship out as a long distance one, spending lots of time apart. Which I believe helped prepare us for future deployments. We were married in May of 1996 (I was 20 and he was 19). My husband joined the Army in February of that same year (1996). We started our married life at Ft. Campbell, KY (1996-2000). Then Special Forces Medic training brought us to Ft. Bragg, NC (2000-2002). This is where I found my career, as a Veterinary Office Assistant/Receptionist.  After he graduated from the course, we headed right back to Ft. Campbell, KY for 5^th Special Forces Group (SFG) (2002-2008). I loved being a Special Forces wife. I was blessed to be a part of that extraordinary community. There, we endured 7 deployments. That’s why I always called the first house we purchased, my house and it was just where he kept his stuff (lol). During his last deployment, Kevin decided to volunteer to go to the United States Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School (USAJFKSWCS) for a 4 year non-deployable assignment (Yay). That led us back to Ft. Bragg, NC (2008-2012). There I continued my career and became a Veterinary Manager at Manchester Animal Hospital in NC. I loved it in NC. I had my husband home for 4 straight years, met some amazing people and my best friend (guess what, she’s from NJ, too), loved my job, and my husband was finally home long enough to finish his bachelor’s degree and prerequisites for USUHS. All of these adventures have led us to our new one here at USUHS.  Moving from a house to an apartment was a challenge (where do I put everything I’ve accumulated over 16 years and my dog is still wondering where the backyard went). I am looking forward to all that this new chapter in our lives will bring. We know it won’t all be easy but with our love and faith, it will all be worth it.