The most outstanding, vivacious rewards in life are seldom material. It takes time, effort and strife to realize ambition and achieve that level of personal satisfaction. On an individual basis, we’re all often trying to achieve the abstract; what is meaningful to one’s self.
After serving in the U.S. Army for eight years and persevering through her nephew’s diagnosis of brain cancer, Esmeralda Moreno will be graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in psychology.
Moreno was born in El Paso, Texas, and moved to Albuquerque during her middle school years. She joined the ROTC in high school and attended TVI, now known as CNM, to secure a liberal arts degree.
Afterward, in what seemed like a natural progression from her military training, she joined the U.S. Army in 2007.
“(Joining the army) kind of came down to, ‘Hey, why not?’ But you don’t know what to expect at the beginning,” Moreno said. “The hardest part is the first day. Once you’re there you can be like, ‘Okay I can do this,’ if you’re mentally and physically capable.”
Moreno completed her basic training in Fort Stewart, Georgia. A normal day in basic training required her to wake up early, carry 25 pounds of equipment, attend classes all day and train long into the night. Just three months after completing her training, she deployed to Iraq that December — the week before Christmas.
“In 2008, specifically, I remember there were more things going on. I was talking on the phone in a tent, it was around 10 at night — all of the sudden we saw a flare coming in. And the whole tent shook. It was close impact, about 12 meters away, but no one was injured,” Moreno said.
This venture was just her first tour in Iraq. After a few months of respite in New Mexico, she was deployed back to the Middle East again in 2010, this time in a much more specialized role. Moreno was the first and only female in her unit able to drive a Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicle (MRAP).
“It was difficult, but I never quit.” Moreno said. “The training and briefing was intense; for two weeks it comes down to being aware of your surroundings. I remember noticing there were no other girls in the program, and they chose me to drive one of the vehicles. It was quite an experience for me, knowing I was the only female.”
Now, back in Albuquerque, Moreno will be completing a degree in psychology, the end of a road she started down in 2011. With her degree, Moreno plans on helping veterans who have sustained mental health damage on tours.
Moreno said her biggest inspiration comes from her 3-year-old nephew, Nery, who was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2015 and has remained in hospital care ever since. After a year of chemotherapy, Nery has begun to show signs of improvement, much to the elation of his family.
“When I look at his strength, he’s not giving up, so why should I? If he can do what he’s going through then there’s no excuse for me to quit,” Moreno said. “There are absolutely no excuses in life not to fulfill our dreams, the goals we want and the desire to achieve them.”
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Audrin Baghaie is a culture reporter for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at culture@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @AudrinTheOdd.
