Emily Tebbetts (now Simmons) served in the air force from May 1992 to August 2012. She went in as a nineteen-year-old girl who had no kind of military experience at all. She worked hard and earned her way into the medical field as a flight med tech. At the same time, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Public Health. She also raised 2 children, part of the time as a single mother.

Emily has been stationed at Dover AFB, Robins AFB and Pease Air Base in Maine. She was deployed to United Arab Emirates in 2001 during Operation Enduring Freedom. She also served in Qatar at two different times and finally she was deployed to Iraq in 2007 during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Emily is very proud of her service to her country as well she should be. She achieved the rank of Master Sergeant and retired after 20 years of service in 2012. Tragically, at the very time she was beginning her retirement and looking forward to spending more time with her children. her 18-year-old son was killed in an automobile accident.

Today, she is living here in Georgia with her daughter, creating a new life for the both of them while at the same time, dealing with a tragedy no parent should have to endure. She is facing her life without her son with the same courage she displayed throughout her military career.