I was born in Pennsylvania, but "home" moved with my father's military career. We packed up often, living where the service took us, until third grade, when we finally settled in Fairborn, Ohio -- the place where my father would retire from the Air Force.

Growing up, I knew my dad had served, but I didn't know the full story. He never talked about his battle scars or the weight he carried. I had no idea that before the Army National Guard and Air Force, my father had been a U.S. Marine from 1964 to 1971, serving two tours in Vietnam. He left for his second tour when I was just 17 days old, and by the time he came home for good, I was under 3. I had no memories of those years -- and he kept them locked away.

After graduating from Florida College with a 2.0 GPA, I moved back to Ohio, unsure of my next step. I knew I had more in me, but I needed something that would challenge me to become my best. One day, I walked into a Marine Corps recruiting office and signed the paperwork. When I told my mom, she said, "You better have not signed anything!"

"I'm 21," I replied.

"I don't care how old you are!" she shot back.

That's when my father broke his silence. After decades of saying nothing about his time in the Corps, he walked out of his bedroom holding two red yearbooks. "Sit down," he said, pulling out a chair at the dining room table. One was from his Marine Corps boot camp. The other was from Vietnam. We sat for hours, turning page after page. He told me stories I had never heard, showed me faces I would never forget and, for the first time, let me glimpse the battles he had carried quietly for so many years.

In that moment, I looked at my father -- the man, the Marine -- and thought, "My life makes sense."

When I stepped off the bus at Parris Island, I didn't just feel like I was joining the Marine Corps. I felt like I was stepping into a legacy I had been born into but never truly understood until that night at the dining room table.

The Corps shaped me into a leader, taught me resilience, and gave me the courage to face every battlefield -- both in uniform and in life. Those lessons carried me through military sexual trauma, personal loss, divorce, and the work of rebuilding myself from the inside out.

This year, on July 16, I marked the one-year anniversary of my father's passing. He may be gone, but every time I stand before an audience, I carry him with me. His legacy lives in my work.

Today, I'm the founder of Brave Again, a movement dedicated to helping all women -- not just women veterans -- reclaim their voice, courage, and power. When I speak to a room full of women, whether they've served in the military, built a business, survived abuse, or are simply fighting their own private battles, I tell them, "Your strength has always been there."
Sometimes, you just need a reason to find it.

I joined the Marines to become more. I left knowing I was unbreakable. And now, through Brave Again, I get to pass that same fire to others. Semper Fi.

Deanna Marie Hall, CEO, Brave Again
www.braveagain.com