New Mission Support Group 1st. Sgt.

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Aaron Smith
  • 102nd Intelligence Wing
OTIS AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, Mass. --  With some people, it seems they are destined for a certain job. For some it may be a police officer, others may be destined to become a teacher; Master Sgt. Victoria Kenny says her future was always working with people. "I've always wanted to help people. I think that's the best thing I could do - be a first sergeant, learn people stories, and help them anyway I can," said Master Sgt. Kenny.
 
The concept of what a first Sergeant does started when Master Sgt. Kenny joined the active-duty military in 1992. As a young Marine, she saw how first sergeants and gunnery sergeants would advise and guide Marines as they went through their careers. After four years with the Marines, and a year with the Army National Guard, Master Sgt. Kenny came to Otis Air National Guard Base and started work as a full-time technician.

Through her time at Otis, Master Sgt. Kenny has taken on many new tasks, like becoming the fuel shop chief in 2009, but she says she looks forward to the challenges of being a first sergeant. "It's the good, the bad, and the ugly. You have to be excited for the good things that happen, like marriages and births, but you have to be ready and willing to take on those uncomfortable conversations," Master Sgt. Kenny noted.

Sgt. Kenny says she plans to be there for it all though. "I think visibility will be a priority for me. I tell people all the time, 'you're going to see me whether you like it or not.' Every drill, I'm going to be coming through the shops and talking with people." This hands-on approach is how Sgt. Kenny hopes to help the airmen of the 102nd Mission Support Group (MSG). By being involved and persistent Sgt. Kenny says she hopes to have a bigger impact on the overall mission. "The number one thing for me is morale, that is first and foremost, because if you don't have that, then your productivity goes. The mission doesn't get done," she noted.

The April training weekend will be Master Sgt. Kenny's first time taking on the full-responsibility as the acting first sergeant. "I've been wanting to be for shirt for, like, forever. I'm in the thick of it, but I already love it," Sgt. Kenny said. In preparation she has taken on four weeks of concentrated training, shadowed, former MSG First Sergeant, Master Sgt. Nick Kollette, and will attend the First Sergeants Academy starting in May.

Airmen from the 102nd MSG can expect their new First Sergeant to be knocking on their door in the near future, if she hasn't already. For those who know Master Sgt. Kenny though, this should come as no surprise - some might say she was meant for the job.