Photo By Sidney Hinds | SILVER SPRING, Md. (Sept. 28, 2023) Lt. Jessy A. Calderon Casillas, industrial hygiene...... read more read more
For Lt. Jessy A. Calderon Casillas, joining the U.S. Navy was appealing for many reasons. The opportunity to travel the globe and experience different walks of life was one such advantage.
A native of Puerto Rico, Calderon takes the values and traditions she grew up with wherever she travels. Her work has taken her many places in the world, where she’s been able to appreciate the cultures of others while sharing her own Hispanic heritage in turn.
“We use the seas as a road to connect countries and people all over the world,” Calderon explained. “I enjoy getting to see ways of living in other places. It’s a real privilege.”
Calderon, an industrial hygiene officer with Naval Medical Research Command (NMRC)’s Safety Office, was the first in her family to join the U.S. military. She graduated from the Public Health School of Medical Science Campus, University of Puerto Rico in 2011, and moved to Florida in 2014.
Calderon worked as an industrial hygienist in central Florida before joining the Navy in 2019. She reported to Navy Medical Readiness and Training Command in Yokosuka, Japan, for her first assignment, where she worked as an industrial hygienist officer. In 2021, she traveled to NMRC in Silver Spring, Maryland, where she has undertaken multiple responsibilities and leadership roles like deputy director for administration and safety department head in addition to her industrial hygienist work.
“The Navy has many career opportunities worth considering” Calderon explained. “Service will impact your lifestyle and relationships, and in the long run it fulfills a sense of purpose and pride, and provides opportunities to grow, experience in the world and connections with extraordinary individuals.”
Calderon has served across the world during her time with the military, to Thailand, Nepal, the Philippines, the Republic of Georgia, Bulgaria and Kenya. Getting an insight into different places around the world has been one of her favorite parts of military service.
Hispanic heritage month is an important observation for Calderon, who finds significance in viewing both her work and life through the lens of cultural values she’s inherited. She expressed the importance of observation months as times for people across the country to pause and celebrate not just Hispanic heritage, but the heritage of people from many different backgrounds.
“It’s an act of protection and preservation,” Calderon explained. “We all have something ingrained in us that comes from our culture, our values and our traditions. Being able to share that with other people who have that same culture is very rewarding, but so is sharing that with others.
“Being aware of our cultural similarities and differences can only add to our well-being as humans, and have a positive impact on the mission,” she added. “Culture makes us who we are, and recognizing that culture is something that can bring us together, which adds flavor to the Navy.”
Calderon is a self-professed foodie, and has enjoyed her assignments abroad and in the Washington Metro Area for the culinary opportunities they offer.
“Being a foodie in the D.C. area is very rewarding. There’s so many places to go; festivals, events, and interesting places to eat. I approach food with the same mindset that I approach travel: see other cultures, taste different things, and experience more of the world. That’s my approach to life as well. I can’t imagine any other way to live.”
Throughout Hispanic Heritage month, NMRC aims to recognize the contributions of our sailors, scientists and civilian personnel with roots in countries and cultures with Spanish-speaking heritage.
NMRC is engaged in a broad spectrum of activity from basic science in the laboratory to field studies in austere and remote areas of the world to investigations in operational environments. In support of the Navy, Marine Corps, and joint U.S. warfighters, researchers study infectious diseases, biological warfare detection and defense, combat casualty care, environmental health concerns, aerospace and undersea medicine, medical modeling, simulation, operational mission support, epidemiology and behavioral sciences.
| Date Taken: | 10.10.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 10.10.2023 12:50 |
| Story ID: | 455453 |
| Location: | SILVER SPRING, MARYLAND, US |
| Web Views: | 328 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Naval Medical Research Command Profile: Lt. Jessy A. Calderon Casillas Discusses Navy Career and Hispanic Heritage Month, by Sidney Hinds, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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