Master Sergeant Carey-ann Patterson has been in the United States Air Force, working as an Air Transportation Specialist for 17 years.  She is in the 58th Aerial Port Squadron and currently Noncommissioned Officer in Charge (NCOIC) of the Air Terminal Operation Center (ATOC).  In June 2009, Patterson volunteered to participate in the Global Medic Exercise in Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, involving three different branches of the Armed Services.

While studying for her Associates Degree in Nursing, Patterson simultaneously worked at UMASS Memorial as a PCAII and continued to fulfill her obligations as an NCOIC. Last month, she took her Nursing Boards and successfully passed as a Registered Nurse. Currently, she is working together to get her 29 Airmen ready for deployment to Iraq in two months.  This will be Patterson’s third deployment for “Operation Enduring Freedom” and “Operation Iraqi Freedom”.