Reserving a path to a lifelong dream

MIITARY OCEAN TERMINAL SUNNY POINT, N.C. -- For most, a military occupational specialty isn't an Army Reserve Soldier's day in, day out. Many tap into this extra skill just one weekend a month, two weeks a year.

Pvt. Showan Isaacs, a cargo specialist with the 1174th Deployment and Distribution Support Battalion, based in Fort Totten, New York, has bigger plans.

Isaacs, who has been in the Army Reserve for less than two years, has already been on three annual trainings. As a cargo specialist, Isaacs ensures Soldiers receive supplies, weapons, equipment and mail all over the world. This means he gets his hands on a lot of heavy transportation equipment like forklifts and cranes.

"My dream job is anything that involves me working on a vehicle," said Isaacs, a native of Brooklyn, New York. In pursuit of his dream job, Isaacs is already looking to change his military occupational specialty to a wheeled-vehicle mechanic. "As long as I'm working on an engine, I'm good," he said. "I'm in my zone."

The desire to get to the nuts and bolts of a vehicle goes back decades for Isaacs.

"When I was a kid, I was always taking things apart: old computers, VCRs … you name it," Isaacs said. "I wanted to know how things worked."

Being a mechanic isn't the end of the line for Isaacs, not by a long shot. With some college education already under his belt, Isaacs has his sights set on a master's degree in mechanical engineering, and the Army Reserve is his vehicle to his dream.

Master Sgt. Steven Considine, a transportation senior sergeant with the 1174th DDSB, has no doubt Isaacs is capable of reaching his goal.

"He's a young kid who's very motivated," said Considine, a native of Poughkeepsie, New York. "He always has a positive attitude, and he's always prepared to do his best."