Individuals join the U.S. Armed Forces for various reasons. Some are looking for adventure or travel opportunities. Others feel the obligation to serve their country or continue a family tradition, while others are seeking financial stability, a career or debt-free training. For Dan Schultz, it was about joining a life-saving service.
In advance of Veterans Day, last week we kicked off a series of blogs highlighting a handful of the nearly 290 military Veterans working for CPS Energy. Today, we shine the light on Dan, whose passion for saving lives is also reflected in his work with our company.
A native of Michigan, Dan joined the U.S. Coast Guard in 2006. He completed the grueling 8-week bootcamp program – the same bootcamp as depicted in the movie The Guardian – and then went straight to ‘A’ school in Yorktown, Virginia, where Coast Guard personnel are trained to provide security and law enforcement support for the branch’s missions. Having gone through bootcamp and then directly to ‘A’ school, he and his wife, Sandy (pictured with him above), spent 6 months living apart during their first year of marriage, like so many others who serve.
On top of the physical and emotional strains he’d already endured, Dan withstood some extreme cold weather during his first assignment to the Marine Safety Detachment in Minnesota – an entire month of 0-degree temperatures and a week of temps that dipped to 25 below 0! Fortunately, he later got to enjoy some toastier weather in Florida while being stationed at Sector Mayport and Sector Jacksonville. A sector is the Coast Guard’s shore-based operational unit that’s responsible for the execution of missions within its physical location of responsibility.
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