Spotlight Sailor – LT Rhodora Cruz

Spotlight Highlight

Lt. Rhodora Cruz is a strong leader and the Officer-In-Charge of the Operational Health Support Unit detachment at Navy Operational Support Center Guam. She successfully completed a nine-month tour (July 2012 – March 2013) as a Trauma/Emergency Room nurse in Kandahar, Afghanistan.

How have you benefited from your service in the Navy Reserve?

The Navy Reserve has allowed me to stay close to home. It has given me the flexibility to explore different nursing careers while serving my country as a military nurse. As a reservist, I have gone on training exercises that have prepared me for operational medicine and mobilized to Kandahar as a trauma/ER nurse. Lastly, the Navy Reserve has allowed me to improve my leadership skills that have helped to accelerate my civilian career.

Why did you choose to join the Navy Reserve?

I had no desire to leave the Island of Guam, so active duty was not an option. There is only one civilian hospital here on the island, and I wanted to stay close to home and work as a nurse. But I wanted to experience the differences in the nursing occupation as a civilian versus the military lifestyle. The end result was that I experienced the best of both worlds. As a reservist, I have grown professionally, but I never realized how much I would gain from both worlds when I decided to join the Navy Reserve.

In my Navy…

There is no differentiation between the Active Component and the Reserve Component. We are committed to working with the community in providing quality health care to the population we serve.