LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — Angela Miranda always aspired to protect and serve. Initially wanting to be a police officer, she decided to enlist with the U.S. Air Force, leading to 20 years exploring the globe in uniform.
“I’ve lived in more overseas countries than I have states,” Miranda said. “I’ve had the opportunity to travel the world, build camaraderie with so many lifelong friends that I have today and just experience life from a different perspective in different cultures.”
When Miranda decided to retire, the return to civilian life presented its own challenges. Chief among them was the death of her husband, an Army veteran.
“We were married six years, but I was with him for two years prior to that…Just every emotion you could think of, happy, sad, mad, lost, like you just, you feel lost,” Miranda said.
Finding help through loss
Through that loss, Miranda found help at the Veterans and Community Resource Center.
“We look at the whole picture, a wholistic view of what the veterans needs are. All the stories that come through are amazing. We just want them to know they are not alone and we’re here to support them,” said Walter Tescano, veterans services coordinator.
Miranda attended a workshop on veteran benefits for widows. The center helped guide her through the process, and two and a half years later, she has found purpose in giving back.
“I don’t do it for people to tell me thank you or anything, but it is nice when you know you really helped somebody or changed their life, you know, it really does make you feel good,” Miranda said.
“It makes you realize that you are doing something for like something bigger than you and helping others,”
Helping fellow widows
Now Miranda is at the center almost every day, helping her fellow veterans get the resources they need, especially fellow widows.
“Marcia, she’s here. I’m helping her out. Unfortunately, she lost her husband about a year after me,” Miranda said. “I was able to talk with her and help her through it. She started coming to the center, and she helps and volunteers with me too.”
Tescano said Miranda has become an entrepreneur of services.
“She wants to get out and see what’s available so she can help other veterans accomplish what she has accomplished,” Tescano said. “Angela has truly done a full circle of her own life, but also of our services. It’s a blessing for us to see the result of what we’re trying to accomplish here.”
The bond service men and women share guides them through their darkest hours.
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