The journey toward induction into the Sergeant Audie Murphy Club was a long but a rewarding experience for Master Sgt. Jessica Lam, 76th Operational Response Command.
Lam said the experience is one that will help her continue serving from the front as an Army Reserve noncommissioned officer.
"The 7th ARCD (Army Reserve Careers Division) invited me to begin the SAMC selection process with them when I was stationed with the 364th ESC (Expeditionary Sustainment Command) in 2012," Lam said.
Unfortunately, she needed to find another unit to finish the process because she moved to Salt Lake City, Utah, to serve as the mobilization NCO for the 76th Operational Response Command and found that there was no Sergeant Audie Murphy Club in the area.
"I had worked as a drill sergeant under the 80th TC," said the 80th Blue Ridge Army Reserve Association lifetime member. "When I heard the 80th TC (Training Command) had an active SAMC program I reached out to the command sergeant major and explained the situation, and he invited me to continue the process with the 80th TC."
Maj. Gen. Bill Gerety, commander, 80th TC, and Command Sgt. Maj. James Wills, the command senior enlisted advisor, officially inducted Lam, along with Staff Sgt. Kristina Fallis, 6/108th Regiment, 1st Brigade, 100th Training Division (Operations Support), into the prestigious SAMC during a ceremony at Fort Knox, Ky., in March 2014.
"You never outgrow the need to push yourself," Lam said. "As we progress in rank it's often easy to become complacent."
The SAMC is a private U.S. Army organization for enlisted non-commissioned officers only. NCO's whose leadership achievements and performance merit special recognition may possibly earn the reward of membership.
Before a Soldier is accepted into the club, that individual's leadership must first nominate him or her. The nominee will then appear before a board at unit level and then a final selection board where questions include, but are not limited to, Audie Murphy history, Army training, leader development, drill and ceremonies, Army command policy, family/soldier support programs and military customs and courtesies.
"I believe SAMC members should be the epitome of the finest NCOs that have served in the US Army," Lam said. "SAMC inductees represent the continual evolution of the US Army while holding true to its history and core values."
"I decided to go through the SAMC selection process to challenge myself personally, set the example for other Soldiers, and to be better equipped to assist other Soldiers who decide to go through the process," she said.
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