Brandi Collins

Share your military spouse story:
I have been an Army spouse for almost 20 years, which I'm told makes me a "seasoned" spouse. I have 2 amazing teenage sons who I am enjoying watching grow into young men. I met my husband in college, and we have been together for his entire active duty career. The military life hasn't always been easy, but my husband and I have always been firmly "team Collins," and that partnership has helped us to get through anything that life and the military has thrown at us. My husband has been on 4 combat deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, and we have had 8 PCS moves, to include 2 overseas moves. Everywhere we have moved, I have always jumped right in volunteering in various places and joining the local spouses' club. It is through jumping right in that I have been able to meet new people and make new friends, and to grow and thrive, no matter where the army has taken us. Not only this, but I have made lifelong friends who I know will always be there for me, no matter how far the army separates us from one another. In 2021, our younger son got sick and started losing weight at an alarming rate, and after several months of tests and procedures was diagnosed with moderate to severe Crohn's disease. We got through the illness and diagnosis thanks to the love and support of our military family, both near and far. This is why I am so passionate about helping others to form connections and build friendships...I cannot imagine going through the past year without the love and support of my friends, and I know how vitally important it is to have a tribe of people who love and support you. This military life is hard enough as it is...finding your people and having friends helps to make it just a little bit easier.

Share an example of your leadership experience within the military community:
I have held leadership roles at various levels during my husband's career. I am currently serving my second term as the President of the Scott Spouses' Club at Scott AFB, and have held various other leadership roles in Family Readiness Groups, PTA/PTOs, and various spouse clubs. I have a heart to serve the community, and I usually hop in feet first whenever I arrive at a new duty station! I've learned over the years that leadership doesn't always involve being in the spotlight, but oftentimes your best leaders and biggest cheerleaders are those who serve silently and build up others. I always try my best, in any of my leadership roles, to build up those serving alongside me. I try my best to inspire others and to lead from the front; by showing others that doing small, menial tasks are not beneath me, I hope that it inspires them to help more in the roles that aren't necessarily as glamorous, but that help and impact others in meaningful ways.

Describe your involvement in the military community:
Throughout my husband's career, I have volunteered at many levels of military life. I have sat on several spouses' club boards, holding positions from public relations chair to President. I have served at various levels of Family Readiness Groups from key caller to treasurer and FRG leader. I have taught all levels of Army Family Team Building classes, helping new military spouses to learn about the army and the military lingo, culture, acronyms, etc. I have been an active volunteer at all of my children's schools, from being a general volunteer to a room parent to serving on various PTA/PTO boards. I have always stepped up to volunteer with my kids' sports teams as well, and firmly believe in the saying "see a need, fill a need." I always strive to bloom wherever I am planted, and to leave a neighborhood/base/organization/group better than I found it.

Describe how you support your community:
I am passionate about helping other spouses to build connections and friendships, and to give back to my local base and local communities. In our lives as military spouses, we are constantly having to rebuild our "tribe." In my position as the president of the Scott Spouses' Club, I oversee and actively work at the various monthly events where we can meet new people in a large group setting, and participate in several of the miniclubs that are offered, where people can get to know others who have similar interests in a smaller-group setting. In addition to connection building, the club gives back to the community by offering grants to local and national organizations, taking up collections for local helping organizations, raising awareness for Wreaths Across America, and giving scholarships to local military dependents, and I am a very vocal and visible supporter of all of these endeavors. Connection building while giving back is my passion, and I do my best to do so wherever we move.

What do you advocate for? Why?
I am an advocate for community and connection building. When we move to a new location, it is very tough to be the new person. I know how vitally important is is to us as human beings to have connections with others. Providing a way for military spouses to meet others and to forge friendships is a way that I advocate this connection building. Additionally, we are only as strong as our communities. In giving back to to our local communities, we help to strengthen the communities, and to strengthen the bond between our military and civilian communities. By giving back to our local and base community, we help to build those communities in which we live.

How have you spread the message of your platform/advocacy?
I constantly reach out on our local base pages to let people know about upcoming opportunities to come to spouses' club events. I also reach out to people who post about being new to the area and looking to meet others via private message to offer to meet them, and let them know about the upcoming events through the spouses' club. I invite them to join me at the next event as my guest and offer to meet them and have them sit with me. I think that reaching out to others to help offer that bridge to connection is extremely important, and I hope that getting the word out about events and reaching out to people helps them to find their friends and community, and ultimately their tribe, at their new duty station.

What do you hope to accomplish with the AFI Military Spouse of the Year^® title?
If chosen as the AFI Military Spouse of the Year, I hope to continue to help others forge connections, make friends, and build their tribes. Building relationships is so vitally important to feeling like one "fits in" at a new duty station, and giving spouses a venue, outlet, and way to make friends is a great way to help them find their place at a duty station. I also hope to continue helping give back to the local communities in which I live. Strengthening the bond between the military and local communities is a great way to help build better communities, no matter where you are stationed. I hope to help continue to strengthen the bond between the local civilian communities and the base community. I also hope to help the local civilian communities to better understand the military community and the unique challenges that we and our children face. An ounce of understanding can lead to a pound of compassion, and I hope to help be a catalyst into that understanding in my community