PCS Story Contest: 7th Place Winner
by Lizann Lightfoot - November 9th, 2021
PCSgrades, in partnership with Shyft, The Home Depot, Radisson Hotels Americas, and US Logistics, is excited to announce the 7th place winner of our 2021 PCS Story Contest.
During the month of August, military and veteran families were invited to share their most memorable PCS story. Entrants had the chance to win a fully-funded PCS move from Shyft, a major gift card from The Home Depot, or 300,000 Radisson Rewards Americas Points. After receiving hundreds of entries in the contest, a panel of judges evaluated the stories based on entertainment, inspirational, and emotional value.
We hoped to hear real PCS stories from real military families, and we certainly did! There were humorous stories of things that went wrong during moves, frustrating stories of families forced to change plans, and spooky stories of getting lost in the middle of nowhere. We will be sharing the winning stories here on our blog over the next few weeks.
The 7th Place Prize is awarded to Marine Corps spouse Hannah Schetrompf! Her family will receive $500 in gift cards from The Home Depot. Their PCS story shares the value of being flexible during a frustrating PCS move:
"We moved from the beautiful cool weather with greenery all around us at Cherry Point, NC to beautiful desert where sweat drips down your head in Yuma, AZ. My memorable PCS story was back in 2019 when my family and I completed our PCS adventure.
We are on the highway in the Midland, Texas area when my husband and I both heard a loud "pop" noise. Then, it was followed by a loud whooshing noise. My husband realized that a tire blew. The speed limit is 80 to 90 mph in Texas, so cars were flying by us. We could hear the whishing sound as cars passed us. He was able to pull over safely, which was amazing to watch him navigate. I could see the wheels turning in his head as he navigated how to get our car over safely. The children were screaming "Mom" and "Dad" repeatedly to try to figure out what was happening. They were on the edge of seats, waiting to know what we're doing and what the noise was. Meanwhile, I was thinking‚ "oh crap, how are we going to get a tire the same day to stay on track to get there in time?" and I started to panic. I can still remember my child screaming with fear of the unknown.
My husband, being the Marine he is, stayed calm and collected the whole time. The kids and I were able to feed off his calm energy and realize everything would be okay. We worked as a team to change the flat and get the spare tire on. It was a test of our strengths and communication skills to work together to get the tire changed, while the kids in the backseat kept asking what was going on. From there, we drove the car over to Discount Tire where the wait would be four hours to get a new tire put on.
We decided to explore the plaza near Discount Tire, and we ate at the best Mexican restaurant I have ever tried! I don't remember if the food was that great, or if we were just starving at that point from a hectic morning. Luckily, we had the stroller in the back of the car and were able to find a nearby walking trail/park. I still remember the kids sitting so nicely at the restaurant and finishing their food--if you have kids, you know this a rare occurrence. As a family, we were able to turn the tire popping into the best adventure of our PCS and created new memories as a family. The kids had been asking the whole trip to go on a nature walk and explore, and this gave us the opportunity. One of our favorite hobbies as a family is to go walking together. I believe this brought the kids and my husband. My husband loves being in the outdoors. It gave us all a place to breathe after a long and hectic day.
The extra time spent waiting for the car to get a new tire allowed us to have bonding time that we wouldn't have otherwise had. I am thankful for this PCS for teaching our family how to become "Semper Gumby." The chaos of the drive to Discount Tire became a teachable moment from my husband. He shared with the kids and I the phrase "Semper Gumby" that they use in the Marine Corps. It means always flexible. There is a picture of a green flexible character that goes with it, and he explained that no matter how you stretch it, it won't break because it is flexible. Since that PCS, our family motto is to become more Semper Gumby, and flexible with whatever life throws at us." PCSgrades, Shyft, The Home Depot, Radisson Hotels Americas, and US Logistics are all happy that we can help during your next PCS move. We hope the next one goes more smoothly! Congratulations to the Schetrompf family.
The PCS Story Contest judging panel included: Besa Pinchotti of NMFA (National Military Family Association), Cameron Cruse of R. Riveter, Penny Bolden of Blue Star Families, Lori Simmons of the Armed Forces Insurance Military Spouse of the Year Program, Natasha Harth, the 2016 Military Spouse of the Year, Whitney Armstrong of MSAN (Military Spouse Advocacy Network), Sam Meek of Sandboxx, and Maria Reed of Moving with the Military.
Lizann Lightfoot, the "Seasoned Spouse" is a professional writer and speaker for the military community. After two decades with her service member, her family has been through 7 deployments and 6 PCS moves. Lizann has raised 5 children and published several books for military families. Her most recent book is "Open When: Letters of Encouragement for Military Spouses" published Sept 2021 by Elva Resa. You can find Lizann's articles and resources at SeasonedSpouse.com
