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Local Army Reserve Soldier set to participate in Best Warrior Competition

  • Published
  • By 99th Regional Support Command
  • 99th Regional Support Command
JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. --  Several Army Reserve Soldiers are scheduled to participate in this year's Best Warrior Competition co-hosted by the Army Reserve's 99th Regional Support Command and 76th Operational Response Command.

Sgt. Kathleen Shetley, a Soldier with the Army Reserve's 380th Army Band headquartered in Richmond, Va., is set to compete in the weeklong competition April 21-25 at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J.

"The Best Warrior Competition is a chance for me to not only represent my unit, but it is an opportunity for me to truly see what I am made out of as a Soldier," explained the 24-year-old Virginia Beach, Va., native. "Through this competition, I hope to not only see how well I can perform Soldier tasks, but also discover the areas of training that I need to improve on so that I can be a better Soldier."

The Best Warrior Competition will test these citizen-Soldiers' warrior skills with events such as the Army Physical Fitness Test, M16 qualification and "Move and Shoot" ranges, urban operations, hand-to-hand combatives, day and night land navigation courses, and a road march.

"Being a citizen-Soldier to me means being an Army ambassador at all times," Shetley said. "I feel an obligation to hold my behavior, work performance and attitude to standards that reflect positively on the Army."

Shetley is a group fitness instructor in civilian life who has also served in uniform for the past five-and-a-half years.

"The Army Reserve has inspired my career choice in group fitness by motivating me to become strong and healthy; I channel my motivation into my group fitness classes to inspire participants to adopt a healthier lifestyle through fun and effective group fitness workouts," said the Prospect, Va., resident. "Having the experience of teaching to a variety of levels and in a variety of class types has made me a better teacher, mentor, and leader in the military."

Shetley holds bachelor's degrees in music and anthropology from Longwood University in Farmville, Va.

"The Army not only gave me the financial ability to attend college, but also gave me the work ethic, organization skills and maturity to succeed in the classroom," Shetley explained. "Being an Army musician greatly impacted my success as a music major by giving me the training and experience as a professional musician."

"Being a music major helped refine and advance my playing as an individual so that my unit could benefit from my abilities as an individual," she added.