Aggies in the Armed Forces: Kwanise Thompson

Kwanise Thompson

Class Year: 2015

Major: Psychology

Greensboro, N.C.

Military Branch: U.S. Army 

Enlistment/Commission Date: 2011

Retired in 2019

Can you share your experience serving in the military?

I joined the military my freshman year of college, because I did not like the classroom environment, I was always a hands-on learner, and I was ready to work and make money, and everyone else around me was joining, and even though joining the military was never a plan of mine, it seemed like  feasible option at the time, So I signed up and was shipped out for basic training a day after my 18th birthday, and it was the hardest thing I ever did, it made a young boy became a man. Looking back over my time spent in the military I learned so much about myself and who I was as a person and who I could be. The military taught me so many life skills that I never knew before, it taught me about finances and how to budget, how to survive in the middle of no where, how to trust people, how to build things, how to be a leader, these was all things that growing up no one showed me. I was not the first person in my family to join the military but no one ever taught me what being in the military could do for me. It made me a better person, I was more focus, and determined to win. I found a fight in me that I never even knew I had. There was times when I wanted to quit, but the military is not a normal job were you can just turn in your two week notice and say  hey I’m done after this guys, you are locked into a contract that you have to complete, so I had to push myself harder then ever, because I couldn’t walk away from obligations and I am so glad I stuck it out to then end. I am a better person because of that experience, I was also able to finish college, it took a little longer due to military obligations, but I finished, and the Army helped, I had resources at my disposable that I never had before, and people who I could call on to him and guide me, and I am forever grateful for that time in my life.

What is a message you would like to share with your Aggie family, friends and relatives?

If I could say anything to my fellow Aggies, it would be never give up on yourself, and always challenge yourself to be better than you were the day before, and incorporate goals into your life that you think you cannot accomplish, so you can prove to yourself that the impossible is possible.

Favorite Quote:

My favorite quote comes from Winnie the Pooh, and he says

” Doing nothing sometimes lead to the very best of something”