A Manitowoc native was honored Saturday during a very impressive Military Retirement Ceremony.
United States Air Force Chief Master Sergeant, Christa Collier, was surrounded by family and friends at The Venue at Union Square.
The former Christa Lettenberger spoke with Seehafer News, and said, “There was no question that I wanted to end my career where it all started and that’s here in Manitowoc. So, tonight is phenomenal where I basically get to mesh my military family and my civilian family and friends and we all come together. Not just to celebrate me, but to celebrate my family for the sacrifices they’ve made and to say thank you to my parents and the rest of my family for support.”
Official Remarks at the ceremony were provided by retired Lieutenant Colonel Jimmy Tyson II, after which a Meritorious Service Medal was presented to the special honoree.
Collier told us she was 17 when she signed up for Active Duty Air Force during winter break of her senior year at Lincoln High School, when she wasn’t ready for college or necessarily knew what she wanted to be.
“That was the first recruiter that came to Lincoln I came in contact with. Sergeant Gregory, I won’t forget the name,” she said. “I thought I’ll just do 4 years and use my military benefit to return home to go to college. During those four years though I fell in love with the military lifestyle and 4 years turned into 25.”
‘Christa served in Minot, North Dakota and at Scott Air Force Base where she found her passion as a military recruiter.
She had most recently been a trainer of Air Force recruiters.
So, what’s next for the Collier family?
Christa explained she will now take a “tactical pause” for a little bit.
“I’ve been going full-speed for a very long time. So, I have a few months of vacation saved up and am going to try to decompress, enjoy time with my family,” she said. “My husband is a business owner so we’ll probably use my recruiting and marketing talents and transition that over to his business.”
The daughter of Mike and Janice Lettenberger, Chief Master Sergeant Collier, her husband Cliff and their two children now reside in Fort Worth, Texas.
