Words Kayla Gahagan
Rebecca, now 36, joined the Guard at the age of 17 after her mother raised her and three siblings in Hartford. “I initially joined for the college benefits,” she said. “I knew I didn’t want student loans.” Rebecca’s twin sister planned to join with her but ended up joining the Air National Guard where she is still serving as a Nurse at the 114th Fighter Wing in Sioux Falls.
Rebecca moved from Sioux Falls to Rapid City in 2019 to work at Camp Rapid full time. Michael, 43, grew up in Sturgis and had been serving with the Guard since 2000.
Both his grandfathers served and he wanted the education benefits as well. The couple got married in Sept. 2021, blending two families.
Michael had three children (Bryan, 20, Ireland, 14 and Killian, 11) and Rebecca had 16-year-old Karter. They welcomed Kyler a little over a year ago.
Why choose the S.D. National Guard
The benefits are widespread – great perks, a strong network of friends, service to your community and country.
“It’s given me so many experiences,” Rebecca said. “I’m always encouraging soldiers to try new positions if you’re unhappy where you’re at, because the Guard has so much to offer.”
Michael agreed. “The National Guard is unique in that you get to serve the nation and your state,” he said. “It’s great supporting two missions, fully ingrained in defending and serving the people of South Dakota and our nation.” And the downsides are clear too – missing out on family.
“Being separated from family is the hardest,” Rebecca said. “We get it. We understand the sacrifice and are mutually supportive when we have to leave, but it doesn’t make it any easier.”
Since 2021, they have each served about a year away from home. Michael served in Iraq for almost a year in 2023 and is getting ready to leave again. Rebecca doesn’t like being away from home either.
“It tears at my heartstrings when I can’t be at my son’s baseball games or other activities,” she said. “I just love to watch the kids in their activities so being away makes that tough.
Serving in Rapid City has softened the blow because of the support of the community and friends and family.
“Rapid City is very supportive of military families,” she said. “We’ve met some amazing families in the Guard and several who are some of our closest friends. Not only do we have amazing friends, but we also have wonderful neighbors, a close family and church community.”
Rebecca recalled a neighbor snow-blowing her driveway every time it snowed while Michael was deployed to Iraq.
“He knew I had a small baby and without hesitation stepped in to help and never expected a thing in return,” she said.
The couple expects to continue serving for the next decade. In the meantime, they don’t take time together for granted.
“Family takes the hardest toll,” Michael said. “The families endure the cost of us being gone for training, duty, and deployments. Time is irreplaceable. So the time we spend away from family is difficult.”