CAMERA READY — Master Sgt. Kelly Goonan, a Brooke High School graduate, is superintendent of the 920th Rescue Wing Public Affairs office at Patrick Space Force Base in Florida. The photo shows her when as a then-tech sergeant taking pictures and video from the inside of a 920th Rescue Wing HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter during a helicopter air-to-air refuel in which one of the wing’s HC-130 P/N Combat King aircraft (now retired from the fleet) connected with an HH-60G Pave Hawk over central Florida. -- Contributed

A “typical day” for Master Sgt. Kelly Goonan as superintendent of the 920th Rescue Wing Public Affairs office at Patrick Space Force Base in Florida is anything but ordinary.

And that, according to the 2006 graduate of Brooke High School, is one of the best things about her job.

“I could be flying in one of our HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopters, documenting (photographing) their training, or I could be flying a night training event with our HC-130J Combat King II aircraft documenting what they’re doing,” Goonan wrote in response to e-mailed questions.

“I could be organizing/preparing training for my airmen, scheduling social media posts for my wing, editing/reviewing articles for website/social media publication or simply visiting the units within my wing in search of the next story to pursue,” noted the daughter of Anna Dailey of New Cumberland and attorney William Galloway of Weirton.

“My wing’s mission is dynamic and amazing. We are the only rescue wing in the Air Force Reserve Command. The 920th Rescue Wing is a combined arms team of special mission personnel and aviation. Our mission is to plan, lead and conduct military rescue operations to deny competitors and adversaries exploitation of isolated personnel.”

Patrick Space Force Base is located between Satellite Beach and Cocoa Beach in Brevard County. She resides with her husband, a gunnery sergeant (E-7) who is active-duty Marine Corps and has been in the service about 17 ½ years.

Goonan, whose rank is master sergeant (E-7), oversees the training and manning of reserve public affairs personnel assigned to her office, but also deals with community relations; is a trusted adviser to wing leadership (commanders); writes and edits articles for publication; manages the 920th Rescue Wing base website and social media accounts; and talks with the media and prepares press releases.

“I’ve been trained on how to create video content as well as generate full news broadcasts to include anchoring, but I rarely use that skill set because it’s not my strongest,” Goonan wrote.

Her specialty is photography — “so I do take pictures of training events, historical events and mishaps if there are any.”

“My photographs and articles have been published in worldwide venues including Stars & Stripes, Air Force Magazine, Air Force Association Daily Report, National Trade Journal, Air Force Almanac, local newspapers, the Lockheed Martin Galaxy Report and international French Magazine Aviation,” Goonan wrote. “I’ve had photos used by the Senate Armed Service Committee during meetings on Air Force restructure. I also have seen my photos in restaurants (Applebee’s) and hotels (Hampton Inn). All of my photography and other work is completely free to use for anyone ­– being a military photographer means I hold no copyright protection which means no one has to ask for my permission to reprint any of my images so it’s always a nice surprise when I unexpectedly see my stuff hanging on walls,” she commented.

“I was hand-selected to provide outreach support during a humanitarian mission in 2012 where I traveled to Guatemala and Nicaragua and provided stories and photos seen worldwide through AFRC websites telling the story of the diversity of the Reserve Command’s heavy airlift mission,” she added.

One of her photos also hangs in Flutie’s Sports Pub in Plainville, Mass. The owner of that establishment is former football star and commentator Doug Flutie.

In 2012, Goonan was stationed at the time at Westover, Air Reserve Base in Chicopee, Mass. “I was a senior airman (E-4) and still pretty new to the military and my career field. My first real assignment for my office was to fly on board one of the wing’s C-5 Galaxy aircraft in January 2012,” she explained of what would be her first time flying in a military aircraft.

“I was charged with taking photos from the cockpit as they performed a flyover above Gillette Stadium before an American Football Conference playoff game between the New England Patriots and the Baltimore Ravens,” she reminisced. “I was incredibly nervous — how on earth do I capture a flyover of a stadium that’s below the monstrous aircraft from the cockpit? I knew I’d only have one chance and if I missed it, I’d not ever get it again. Fortunately, I was able to capture the moment and all was well,” she continued.

“I’m not sure how long after, it had been months, though, that our office received a phone call from Mr. Flutie’s people. They called and asked how they could acquire rights to have that image printed to hang on a wall within a new bar he would be opening. I was flabbergasted — it was an honor to have a phone call like that. I couldn’t believe how many people had seen something I produced — it was incredible,” she noted.

Goonan, who grew up in Weirton on Marland Heights, graduated from Brooke High School. She has an associate’s degree from the Community College of the Air Force in mass communications and a bachelor’s of arts degree in communication with a concentration in public relations. Her conferral was Nov. 1. Her GPA was 3.96.

She is a member of Sigma Tau Delta, National Honor Society for Leadership and Success, HonorSociety.Org and National Society of Collegiate Scholars.

As “fun, random facts” regarding her major-changing education, Goonan noted she accumulated 174 college credits and attended West Virginia Community College, West Liberty State College (now West Liberty University), Community College of the Air Force (virtual), University of Massachusetts (briefly), Kennesaw State University (two years) and finally (where she received her degree from) Southern New Hampshire University.

Military pursuits were far from Goonan’s thoughts as a youngster.

“When I was growing up, as my family likes to remind me, I wanted to own a fleet of ice cream trucks when I was in elementary school (L.B. Millsop),” she began. “When I got to middle school (Follansbee Middle) I thought I’d pursue becoming a veterinarian. There was a strong desire to become an EMT or emergency room nurse toward the beginning of high school. From there, I started to realize that I really didn’t know what I wanted to become when I became of age, and so the thought of going to college immediately after graduation was a bit overwhelming. Fortunately, my parents were able to persuade me to knock out some general studies while I navigated through my thoughts on what to pursue in college.”

That she elected to enlist in the Air Force has a back story.

“One was to instill a sense of pride for my grandparents and my parents. My sister had graduated from WVU, with a double major and with Latin honors while I was still struggling to define who I was as a person,” she explained. “I ended up enlisting at the age of 21, so I definitely needed something to help me figure out what I wanted to do with my life. I felt that enlisting would give me the best opportunity to be exposed to various career fields, meet new people, have amazing opportunities that not many others do, while also providing me the opportunity to serve the country that I love so much — just as my maternal grandfather did,” she noted, referring to the late Hobert Yeager.

“I knew a lot more about his service because he was alive long enough to share all his stories with me — in fact, I absolutely feel that my service brought us closer together, giving us a bond no one else could ever have with an understanding of the sacrifices that would have to be made,” she commented.

“I also recognized the need for myself to get away from the comforts of home and to find a way to see the world on my own. Another reason was because the stock market had taken a dive and most of my college money that was tied into stocks had become drained at that time, and I did not want to take out any student loans, so another reason would be to ensure I could pursue higher education at little or no cost to myself.”

In the end, she noted, the Air Force Reserve was the best option that gave her “a purpose, life direction and a foundation of experience that I would never have gotten anywhere else.”

Why the Air Force?

“Well, a good friend of mine had just come home from Army Reserve training and was telling me all about it — that’s where the idea of being in the Reserve came from initially,” Goonan wrote. “I didn’t want to enlist into the active duty right out of the gate since I’d not ever been exposed to the military lifestyle and was a little hesitant, thinking that I would have hated it. I figured going reserve would be a great way to introduce myself into that world, knowing I would always have the option to go into the active duty if I ever wanted to,” she continued. “I told my mother that I was going to enlist in the Army Reserve, too, because it sounded better than going straight active duty at the time because my immediate family did not serve.”

She said her mother “was kind of horrified, as most mothers would be, I suppose, but she knew I wouldn’t change my mind,” Goonan noted. The husband of one of her mother’s best friends was an Air Force Reserve officer stationed at the 911th Airlift Wing in Pittsburgh. “She arranged a meeting for me to talk with him about the Air Force Reserve, and I was sold on the Air Force after that discussion,” she added.

The decision to go into the Air Force “was made firm after talking with that Air Force Reserve C-130 navigator because he was able to elaborate on all his worldly travels and experiences which was really what drove my decision — and because I knew it would make my mother happy. It also helped tremendously to have been exposed to the fact that there was, in fact, an Air Force Reserve and there was a unit that was not far from home at the 911th Airlift Wing,” she noted.

Several members on her father’s side of the family served in the military, explained Goonan. “My great uncle, Army Pvt. Paul Galloway, was killed in action in the Korean War.”

Her mother’s side of the family also had members who served in the Army. “My grandfather, Sgt. Hobert Yeager, served in World War II and received a Purple Heart among other decorations. He is also cousin to Gen. Chuck Yeager, though I never had the opportunity to meet him before he passed away,” she continued, “so part of my desire and decision to enlist was also to honor my grandfather and his service.”

There’s a lot to like about being in the service, according to Goonan, and that includes the camaraderie and having a huge “extended family that I would do absolutely anything for and who I know would do pretty much anything for me if ever asked.

“They’ve helped me change tires, showed up at the house to watch our kids when I was in a car accident, have provided a shoulder to cry on, an ear to bend, just so much,” she explained.

“The camaraderie I’ve found in the service is comparable to nothing. It’s incredible. Even though my husband is USMC and I’m USAF (it’s like a brother/sister relationship between the branches with the picking-on aspect) but as soon as an ‘outsider’ tries to pick on a branch who has never served, we stick up and back up our other branches just like an older brother or sister would do,” she assured.

The Air Force has provided Goonan with the opportunity to pursue what she loves doing.

“When I was struggling to figure out what I wanted to do in this life there was one quote that stuck with me — ‘Find a job you love doing and you’ll never work a day in your life.’ The Air Force gave me that. Don’t get me wrong, there have absolutely been challenging days and others that have made me question whether or not I want to stay in, but I’ve realized that I have an amazing career, at an incredibly beautiful location, with a kickass unit that has remarkable leadership — all of which outweigh any bad day at the office.”

Goonan can boast a number of accolades for achievements she’s made in her career field, including making master sergeant (E-7) relatively quickly (10 years).

Her awards include Air Force Commendation Medal; Air Force Achievement Medal; Air Forces Reserves Meritorious Service Medal; Senior Non-Commissioned Officer of the Quarter, 1st Quarter – 2021; first-place feature photo, AFRC Media Contest, 2020; first-place Photojournalism, AFRC Media Contest, 2015; second place Photojournalism, AF Media Contest, 2015; AFRC Photojournalist of the Year, 2014; second-place News Photography, AFRC Media Contest, 2014; SSgt. Christopher S. Frost Outstanding AFRC Communication NCO award, 2013; Outstanding Military Photographer, AFRC Media Contest, 2013; first-place Illustrative Photography, AFRC Media Contest, 2013; first-place documentation photography, AFRC Media Contest, 2012; first-place Sports Photography, AFRC Media Contest, 2012; Outstanding New Photographer, AFRC Media Contest, 2012; and Airman of the Quarter, fourth quarter, 2012.

Goonan explained that the Air Force Media Contest is a public affairs competition for Active Duty, National Guard, Reserve and Department of the Air Force civilians sponsored by the Secretary of the Air Force Office of Public Affairs and administered by the Air Force Public Affairs Agency. The purpose of the competition is to stimulate and reward excellence and professionalism in the print, graphics, photography, broadcast and musician career fields. Individuals and units receive awards for outstanding achievements in furthering Air Force and Department of Defense communication objectives.

Asked what her thoughts are on Veterans Day, Goonan responded, “I’m incredibly thankful for the veterans in my life and for all veterans, both past and present. I’m blessed to be able to call these selfless Americans my brothers and sisters. It’s a unique bond I feel. Anyone who has ever sworn an oath to protect and serve this country, no matter if it was just for four years or if it were for more than 30, at one point in time said they’d give their life for the protection of another. It doesn’t matter if we have opposing religious beliefs, different political views, if you’re Generation Z or from the Greatest Generation — we are family.”